The Bacca, the Caveman, the King, and the Spaceman (Discontinued)
by Jay Sketchin
Summary: Jerome, Dan, Adam, and Jason all wake up in Minecraft, except this time they're are physically inside the game. Trapped in a destroyed and taken-over Minecraft world, the four have to team up with Mitch and new friends to save the game's world, fulfill the prophecy, and figure out how to get home. (On hiatus until further notice)
1. The Beginning

"Is everyone ready?" Adam asked turning on his recording software, and turned to the three faces on his Skype.

"Yep" said Jason, giving him a thumbs up.

"Si" said Dan.

"Let's do this!" cried Jerome, throwing his fist in the air.

"Okay, I'll start." Adam replied adjusting his microphone so it was facing him.

"Three, two, three, three…Hey guys, Sky here with MinecraftUniverse, CavemanFilms and Fluffy. And today, we are doing Death Defiers. Fluffy, what is Death Defiers?" Adam turned his character to Jerome's. The Bacca was running in circles around Jason and Dan's characters.

"Uh, Death Defiers is a new mini game where you have to survive to win. We play against each other in a place sort of like the walls, except the redstone makes the game harder with each stage, like adding mobs and setting off traps and the last player standing wins."

"Okay, should we start?"

"Sure." Jason went over to the starting button. "We ready?"

Adam ran over to the button, and punched Jason out of the way. "I wanna start!"

"Ow! No, I wanna start!" cried Jason punching his character back. It was too late though, for Adam had already pressed the button.

Adam's FPS suddenly dropped. "Whoa, whoa, lag! You guys getting that to?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm getting it." said Dan. "Me too." replied Jason. "Guys, I crashed." said Jerome. Adam's Minecraft crashed too. "Aw, mine crashed too!"

"So did ours." said Dan and Jason simultaneously.

"What the heck…" Adam under his breath.

"Guys?" asked Dan, sounding nervous.

"Yeah, Dan?"

"Do you guys hear that humming too?"

They all fell silent, and they could hear a loud humming coming from someone's Skype. "I think it's mine." said Jerome. "No, it's mine. I hear it in my computer too." replied Jason. Adam heard it from his too.

"Guys, its coming from me too."

"Are they all overheating? Is it Minecraft?"

"There's no way _Minecraft _could make our computers overheat. And how could all start overheating at the exact same time? How does that even remotely make sense?"

"Hey, it's not that crazy of an idea!"

"Guys, this is getting really weird." Adam said, starting to get worried.

"Guys!" cried Jason. He had gotten up and was backing away from his webcam. "Jason, what's wrong?" Adam asked. "My computer is heating up like crazy! I think it's gonna ex-"

They all heard an explosion and Jason left the call.

"Jason!" Jerome yelled nervously.

"Oh my god…" Adam cried, checking the Skype. Jason had gone offline. Adam felt his keyboard start to warm up. "Guys, what the hell is going on?"

Dan didn't answer, he just got up and backed away from his computer.

"Oh god, no... Dan! Dan, get away from the computer!" They heard another explosion and Dan left the call.

Adam looked at Jerome's webcam. His face was filled with shock and fear. "Adam…what's going on?" Jerome said, fear evident in his voice. Adam suddenly felt his keyboard get uncomfortably hot.

"Jerome...get away from your computer, now before it explodes too!"

Jerome left the call.

Adam's face went pale, and he heard his computer's humming get louder and louder. He got up from his chair, and took a few steps back. It was starting to steam and he saw the monitor shaking uncontrollably.

He heard a loud explosion ringing in his ears and he was thrown back onto the ground. The last thing he saw was the ceiling blurring in front of him, and then darkness…

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**Yay, Adam and the others died! …um, yay? Just kidding, like someone would start a book like THAT :P**

**LIVE LONG MY LEGION OF WEIRDY BEARDIES!**


	2. Minecraft?

Jason groaned as he woke up on something soft, it felt like grass. He was lying on his back and ached all over.

Jason looked up and saw square-shaped clouds_. _He slowly sat up and looked around him. His vision was blurred and he couldn't see things clearly, but it looked like everything was...blocky. Jason also noticed that his vision seemed to have some sort of orange tint in it, not huge, but enough to notice it.

He looked to his right and gasped.

There was a limp shape lying on the ground a couple feet away from him.

He gulped and slowly crawled towards it. As he got closer, Jason was able to see that figure better. It looked like Dan's skin, but it looked so real.

_I wonder if..._ He thought, poking his face with his finger.

"Dan?" He nervously asked.

The figure groaned, and his eyes slowly opened. They landed on him and widened. He screamed and jumped back, crawling away from Jason.

Jason quickly held his hands up. "Whoa, whoa Dan, calm down it's me!"

He stopped, and looked at Jason weirdly. "Jason? Is that you?" he stuttered.

Jason walked over to him, and helped him up. "Yeah, it's me, Dan. Why would you think it wasn't?" Dan looked at him with more surprise.

"Jason, you look like your Minecraft skin."

"WHAT?!"

Jason looked down at his hands. They were covered in some sort of blue fabric in the shape of gloves and he saw his fingers were now square shaped. The fabric had other pieces of metal of the same color over it. He looked at the rest of him. It all looked like his Minecraft skin. Jason stood in shock for a few moments before another thought entered his mind.

His skin didn't have a face.

Jason slowly lifted his hands to his face and saw them stop a few inches in front of him, blocked off by the tinted glass. He felt around for a latch, and unhooked the helmet from his face and slowly lifted it off.

He looked at Dan. "Do I really have a chicken head?" He asked.

Dan stared and shook his head. "No, you actually look like the real you. You have your blue eyes and hair still. It's just…"

"Looks like Minecraft?" Jason finished. He nodded. Jason looked at Dan's skin more closely.

Dan looked just like his skin. He was wearing a black hat with a white pixelated "Y" mark on the front and on the sides, a black shirt with a yellow and green tie that went down to his waist, and black and white striped sleeves and pants. He had blue-green eyes and wild brown hair that poked out from under the hat and a matching brown beard.

"You look like your skin too."

"I do?"

"Yeah," Jason said. "You even got the beard." Dan looked down himself, and back at Jason.

"Whoa, this is super weird. Jason, what's going on?"

"I don't know, but... doesn't this seem familiar to you?" Jason asked him, tucking his helmet under his sleeve. Dan looked around at the trees and pond that was near them.

"Yeah, is this...Minecraft?"

"I think it is." Jason replied. He turned to Dan. "But how is this even possible?"

Dan shrugged in response. "I don't know, but maybe we can-"

The two got cut off by a scream that sounded not that far off.

"AAAHHH!"

Dan and Jason looked at each other and spoke at the same time

"Adam?"

Jason turned and ran in the direction of the scream with Dan following. They knew that scream anywhere.

They came into another clearing and saw someone kneeling over a figure on the ground. The person was wearing a gray and black outfit, ruby red boots and a golden medallion that had a glowing purple stone in the center. He had messy brown hair and dark sunglasses.

"Adam?" Jason asked as he cautiously stepped closer. The figure looked at Jason and a look of shock went over his face.

"Jason, is that you?" He asked and Jason immediately recognized it as Adam's voice. "Why do you look like your skin?"

Dan walked over from behind Jason. "I think we can ask you the same thing, Adam."

Adam looked down and gave a quiet gasp as he took in his appearance. "What the Nether?"

His head shot up and he covered his mouth. "Did I seriously just say that?"

Jason and Dan's eyes widened. "Oh my Notch…" Jason breathed before widening his eyes. "What the heck? Why are we talking like this?"

Adam thought for a moment. "It sounds like the lingo people use in…Minecraft." Adam's eyes widened and they locked with Dan's and Jason's.

"Are we…?" He started to ask but trailed off.

"I think we are," Dan said as he helped Adam up.

"But why'd you scream?" Jason asked. "We heard you over there and that's how we found you, but…why?"

Adam turned to the figure on the ground and Jason and Dan took their first real look at the figure and gasped.

A bacca in a suit was lying on the ground. He looked just like Jerome's skin except it looked a lot more real. He had the black suit on along with the red tie. He had brown fur that seemed to cover his whole body, and he wasn't wearing shoes. He also had two small pointed teeth that stuck out of his mouth and his eyes were closed, though they could imagine they were black like his skin.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

_He's breathing, but I don't know when he'll wake up, I'm no doctor._

Jerome recognized that voice... was that Dan? He slowly opened his eyes and noticed everything seemed fuzzy and out of focus. He groaned, and slowly sat up.

Jerome turned and saw three odd figures standing around him. They were all shaped like a Minecraft skin. Their arms and legs were long rectangles, and their heads were squares. One looked like a blue astronaut, one looked like an oddly dressed caveman, and the other looked like a guy wearing sunglasses and a gray and black outfit.

Now that he thought about it, they all looked like Jason, Dan, and Adam's person who looked like Adam stepped closer to him.

"Jerome?" he asked. Jerome's eyes widened. _That voice... it is Adam!_

"Adam, is that you?"

Adam nodded, and turned to the other two people. Jerome glanced at the two who looked like Dan and Jason.

"Jason? Dan?"

They both nodded in understanding while Dan stepped over and helped him up. "Are you alright, Jerome?" He asked.

Jerome turned to him puzzled. "Yeah, I'm fine…Why wouldn't I be?"

Jason walked over to a pond, and gestured for him to come over. "I think you should see this, Jerome."

Jerome slowly approached the pond and looked over the edge and nearly gasped as he took in his appearance like Adam did. "What the…?"

Jerome's head shot up and looked at the others.

"Are we in Minecraft?" Jerome asked.

"I'm not quite sure, but I think we are. I mean, what else has trees that look like this?" Jason said, gesturing to the forest around them.

Dan covered his head in his hands. "Okay, someone pinch me, I must be dreaming…" He yelped as Jerome pinched his arm. He shot Jerome a glare who only shrugged sheepishly.

"What? You asked." Jerome said, a smile curling at his lips.

Adam glanced around. "Okay, so this isn't a dream, we're in Minecraft, and we all look like our skins, and the sun is starting to go down."

"Wait, what?" Everyone asked, snapping their heads towards Adam.

He pointed at the sun, which was starting to set.

"Crud..." said Dan. "What do we do?"

Jerome walked over to a tree. "Well, I guess we should get wood." Jason went over to the tree after him.

"You sure, Jerome, I mean, what if you break your wrist or something?" He just shrugged, and raised his fist. He held his breath and swung his hand straight into the tree, waiting for immense pain, but was surprised as it didn't hurt at all, no broken bones or anything.

Sure enough, he got a piece of wood in a matter of seconds. After about a minute they had five pieces of raw wood. The guys quickly huddled together with their backs to each other, and watched for a few minutes as nothing came out of the woods.

"Maybe the world we're in is on peaceful?" Dan asked. Jason looked at the moon. It wasn't that high up, but we could still see it, and it was definitely dark enough for mobs to spawn. Adam looked at all of them. "I guess we build a fire, then?" The small group nodded, and got to work.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**Yay, they're in Minecraft now! Now the real adventure can begin! Onto the next chapter! *jumps onto nyan cat and flies off into the sunset***

**LIVE LONG MY LEGION OF WEIRDY BEARDIES!**


	3. A Raven's Call

The group had built a fire easily and had set up camp in a small clearing. It was late, but none of them really wanted to sleep. Dan had made a couple leftover sticks and was playing with them, Jason was staring at the fire, and Jerome was lying on the ground staring up at the sky.

"So," Adam started, catching everyone's attention. "What do you guys think happened?"

"Maybe it was the computer. I mean, all of our computers exploded at the same time, so maybe that had something to with it." said Jason.

"But, how could've our computers brought us into Minecraft? I mean, it doesn't make any sense."

Dan threw one of the sticks in the fire. "Then what else could've happened?" he asked. Jason shrugged. "I don't know, but maybe-" he got cut off by a faint rustling in the bushes behind them.

"Did you guys hear that?"

Jerome shrugged. "It was probably just a bat."

Jason sighed. "Yeah, I guess. So, what are we gonna do? I mean, we can't exactly call for help, or anyone for that matter."

Adam shrugged. "I don't really know what we can do, aside from acting like we're playing the game."

"The game?"

"Yeah, you know, like Survival mode. I mean, we can get wood, so maybe we just try to survive. We could-"

Adam got cut off by a large sound off in the trees, not too far from where they were. Jason was already on his feet, looking out in the direction of the noise. "Okay, we all heard that, right?"

Jerome stood up as well. "Yeah, that was way too loud to be a bat." Adam turned to the others. "What do we do? Hide?"

Jerome brushed past Dan. "I'll go see what it is."

Before he got far Adam had grabbed onto his shoulder. "Jerome no! What if it's dangerous? You might get yourself killed! We don't even know if we respawn here!"

Jerome looked at Adam then back at the group and sighed. "Okay, if I don't come back in five minutes, come after me."

Adam glanced at everyone and let his arm drop to his side. Jerome turned and walked off into the woods.

**. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . **

Jerome quietly made his way over to the source of the sound, looking all over as he walked. _It's a good thing I have this fur on my feet, otherwise I would be making a ton of a noise right now. _He thought to himself, not wanting to attract anyone...or anything.

He had walked for about a minute when he came to the place they heard the noise. It was a very small clearing, surrounded by thick oak trees.

Jerome swallowed and softly called out. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

Nothing happened, only the quiet rustle of wind against the tree tops. Jerome waited for a couple more minutes before turning and started heading back. "Guess it wasn't anything after all."

Suddenly, the sound of a twig snapped behind him.

Jerome turned just in time to see a dark figure run out of the bushes and collided into him. The force of the figure hitting him caused them both to lose their balance and fall onto the grass. Jerome quickly got up and stared at the figure that had knocked him over. It was a person. They were wearing blue jeans and dark blue hoodie that was hiding their face. They were wearing sneakers that were ice blue and had a sheath to hold a knife on their left hip.

The figure groaned and pushed itself off the ground. It briefly glanced in Jerome's direction and did a double take.

Before Jerome could comprehend what was happening he had been flipped onto his back. He cried out in pain and tried to get up and run but was tackled to the ground by the figure. Jerome felt something grab his shoulder and then felt the trunk of a tree pressing into his back, the glint of a knife being held dangerously close to his face.

Jerome struggled in the figure's grip but could only stop as the blade was brought closer to his neck, just millimeters away from puncturing the skin. "Whoa whoa whoa! I'm not here to hurt you!" He tried to explain. "I mean no harm!"

"You think I'm stupid?" asked the figure. "I'd be a real idiot to think you wouldn't be trying to kill me."

Jerome stared at the figure's shadowed face. "W-Wha…" He stammered.

The player huffed and pulled the knife away, flipping it in their hand. "Like you don't know who I am." They diverted their attention back to Jerome and brought the knife back to Jerome's face. "What type of soldier are you? Mob? Scout? Hunter?"

Jerome raised an eyebrow. "_Soldier_?" He asked.

"Playing dumb, are we?" The player said in a cold voice. They brought the knife closer to his throat, putting light pressure on his neck. "Who are you?"

Jerome swallowed and stared at the player with pure fear. "Um…my name's Jerome." He answered. "And…I'm not from here."

The player's knife loosened at that last part, but not enough to give Jerome any means of escape. "What do you mean by that?" The player questioned.

"I-I came from another world. My friends and I were playing a Minecraft map and our computers had started smoking, and the next thing we knew, we were here." Jerome's eyes flickered to the player who was giving to no sign of letting him go. "I don't know what you mean by soldiers, but all I do know is that we heard a noise, I came to check it out, and then you came in and then, well, this happened."

The player regarded him and finally let go of him, placing their knife back into its sheath. "I believe you." Jerome sighed with relief and unconsciously touched his neck where the player had held the knife.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" The player asked.

Jerome glanced at them and shook his head. "Oh, no. You didn't hurt me." The player sighed and rubbed the back of their head. "Um, sorry about, you know…almost killing you. I didn't know what else to do, and I was kinda in a hurry to get out of here, I thought you were one of Lex's soldiers."

Jerome nodded. "I understand, just don't do that again with me, okay?" The player chuckled and Jerome grinned at them.

A large rustling caught their attention and Jerome turned and saw Dan, Jason, and Adam running towards them. The player reached for their knife, but Jerome calmly grabbed their wrist. "They're with me." The player nodded and let go of the knife.

"Jerome!" Adam cried happily. "You're okay!" The three ran over and crowded around Jerome. "Are you hurt? Did something bite you?" Dan asked, examining Jerome's hand. Jerome gently pushed Dan's hands away.

"Guys, I'm fine." Jerome turned to all three of them and smiled. "Thanks for coming to see if I was okay, though." They all smiled and made a group hug.

Jerome pulled away and gestured for the player to come over. "Guys, this is the 'bat' we heard earlier. This is…" Jerome stopped and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name." The player reached up and flipped their hood back.

"I never gave it." The girl smirked, throwing her long brown hair back. She brushed her bangs out of her face and her brown eyes became visible. She reached out her hand. "My name's Raven, nice to meet you." Jerome shook it and Raven shook hands with everyone else.

"Well, Raven, it's nice to meet you too." Dan smiled. "My name's Dan, this is Adam, Jason, and I think you've already met Jerome."

Adam glanced at Jason and noticed his astronaut friend was staring at Raven, almost in a trance. Adam's eyebrow raised and he nudged Jason's elbow. The blue astronaut shook his head and looked at him through his helmet before turning back to the group.

Raven nodded and glanced over her shoulder. "Yeah…"

She flipped her hood up and her face became invisible again. "You guys may want to vacate this area really soon. I'm afraid I might have brought some unwanted company with me."

Everyone tensed up. "Um, what do you mean by that?" Jerome asked cautiously.

Before Raven could answer an arrow flew by the group's heads and struck deep into the tree on their left.

"Notch damn it, I thought I would have more time." Raven swore, running to the end of the clearing. "C'mon! Hurry!" With that Raven ran into the woods. The group exchanged glances before Jerome took off after Raven, the rest following closely behind him.

Arrows whizzed by the group's heads as they followed Raven through the woods. The female player was appearing to follow an invisible path, zigzagging through the trees and hopping over fallen logs like they weren't even there.

Dan turned his head and caught a glimpse of light a little ways behind them. Yells followed it and the light started to get closer. The caveman's eyes widened and he turned back to the group. "They're getting closer!"

Raven turned around and noticed the commotion behind them. Her eyes darted around and caught sight of a small ditch off to the side. She turned towards it and leaned over the side peering down at it. There was a large patch of earth that hung over part of the ditch, shadowing the area behind it in complete darkness.

"Everyone get in! Quick!" Raven ordered. Jerome turned to her, ran over, and jumped down the ditch. Everyone else followed and Raven ducked down and slide down the side of the dirt wall. She sat on the ground and pressed her back to the wall alongside everyone else, making a signal for them to be quiet.

The sounds came closer and the five of them could hear voices talking to each other as multiple footsteps echoed throughout the forest. Everyone held their breath as the sounds and light slowly of their predators faded away and the silence of the forest was the only sound present.

Raven exhaled and slowly stood up. The guys started to get up after her, but Raven gestured for them to stay where they were.

"Stay still, and don't make a sound. Wait until I call the all clear."

With that, Raven jumped up and climbed out of the ditch with little to no effort and rolled onto the grass. A minute or two passed before the group heard her call down to them that the coast was clear.

The group slowly and cautiously made their way out of the hole. Raven looked around and locked her eyes on an invisible path that only she could see. "This way." She started walking back into the woods and the rest of the group followed.

The group continued walking until they came across the large hill in the middle of the woods. There was a tree growing on top of it and a small hollowed out stone area with grass and ferns growing beneath it.

Raven walked into the hollowed out area and huddled up with them.

"Where do we go now?" Adam inquired, leaning against a stone wall.

Raven lifted her hand and gently pressed on a stone next to her on the wall. "I wouldn't stand there if I were you."

The sound of pistons played from behind the wall and the stone behind Adam moved out of the way. Adam yelped and fell back and into the now visible stone staircase leading down. Raven reached down and helped Adam up and started walking down the stairs.

"Hey, Dan," The caveman turned to the female player. "Could you push that button on the wall?" Dan turned and noticed a stone button protruding from the wall. He pressed it and the pistons moved the stone back into place, closing the entrance and leaving them all inside the stairway.

"Thanks." Raven smiled, and turned back to the group. "Shall we?" The guys all nodded and she began leading them deeper down the stairwell.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

**Sorry for taking so long on this one! I was busy with family and stuff. But I'm back, and I'll try to get the next one down soon! Hope you guys like Raven, she's gonna be a big part of the story. You'll learn more about her character as the story progresses, but I think you guys will like her a lot! :D **

**LIVE LONG MY LEGION OF WEIRDY BEARDIES!**


	4. Home?

The group was lead down the stairwell by Raven into a large open cave. A large underground lake was connected into the entrance to the stairwell. Redstone, iron, emerald, and gold shined off the reflection of the water.

A small cave tunnel lead to a larger room made of spruce wood. Oak logs were placed around the room as beams with torches attached to them. A stone slab fireplace was on the far corner with a dark blue carpet laid a few feet from it out of the flames reach. Bookshelves and paintings were set up around the walls of the room. In one corner there was a couple furnaces, some chests and a few crafting tables. A table and chairs for four people were set near the kitchen area, with a couch by the fireplace.

"Do you live here?" Adam asked Raven. Raven nodded her head and smiled. "It's really nice. Very cozy."

"Thanks." Raven replied, smiling. She pointed down the hallway near one of the other walls. There was a stairway that lead up to an overhang over the fireplace. "My room and storage is up there along with Sheep's pen. There's some extra rooms down the hallway with a bathroom and a guest room. The room on the right is where you guys can stay."

"'Sheep's pen'?" Dan asked.

"Oh, Sheep is my pet sheep. He lives here with me." She took a quick glance at the overhang and turned back to them. "Don't tell I called him my pet. He likes to be treated equally."

"Okay…" Jerome replied, exchanging a confused look with Jason.

"Okay, so I'm guessing you guys haven't had anything since you got here, right?" Raven asked, walking over to one of the chests and pulling out some cooked foods.

Everyone's stomach growling answered her question and she chuckled. "Sounds like me when I don't get enough sleep."

The group laughed lightly at Raven's joke as she passed the cooked food around.

She reached out to hand a cooked fish to Jerome and right before he was about to grab it, his arm froze. His pupils narrowed to small slits and he yanked his arm back.

"Jerome?" Adam asked worriedly as his friend backed away from Raven, and started moving towards the wall.

Jerome made an inhuman growl and backed away from Raven and up to the wall. Raven was standing in a mixture of shock and fear.

"Get that thing away from me!" Jerome yelled, his eyes darting around frantically, looking at the cooked fish in fear.

Raven eyed and fish and without a second thought threw it into the fire. The fish flew in and was instantly swallowed by the flames.

Jerome stopped trying to move away but still looked as terrified as before. Dan kneeled down beside Jerome and grabbed his furred hands. The caveman froze as he felt small sharp claws protruding from Jerome's hands.

"Jerome." Dan said calmly, making the bacca turn to him. "Calm down. It's gone, you're okay." Jerome's breathing slowed and his pupils grew back to their normal size.

"Are you okay?" Dan asked him, and Jerome nodded slowly. The two stood up and the others stared in shock.

"What the heck was that?" Adam exclaimed, looking at the burning cooked fish.

"Vile creatures." Jerome realized, causing everyone to look at him. "Vile Creatures are something me and Mitch made up." Jerome explained. "Whenever we played hunger games I would refuse to eat cooked fish. I would act like it was poisonous to me and wouldn't even have some in my inventory." He glanced worriedly at the burning fish in the fireplace. "Guess here it's not a joke."

Raven was watching in shock. "Jerome, I'm sorry. I didn't know…" She apologized, reaching out a hand but pulling it back. Jerome went over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. I didn't know either. At least now we know for next time."

Raven smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, definitely **no** cooked fish."

"Speaking of _here_." Dan spoke up, directing attention towards him. "Raven, could you maybe explain what the heck is going on here? I mean, there are soldiers chasing after you, and you live in an underground home."

"You want me to explain why there were soldiers?" Raven inquired.

Dan and the rest of the group nodded.

"Alright, sit down."

The group of five walked over to the table and they all sat down while Raven stood at one side of the table.

"Okay, so it all started about fifty years ago…"

"_A long time ago, this land was free. People were able to explore, build, and create among each other is peace and equality. We were ruled by the Great One, who called himself Steve and was kind, brave, and fought for the well-being of us across the land._

_One day, a mysterious man arrived in the land. He was very odd, but taught us many things. He taught us how to set traps for the zombies, how to destroy creepers without harming ourselves, and how to deflect skeleton arrows. We learned to create flower pots, tame horses, create advanced redstone contraptions, and how to defend ourselves. Soon Steve became good friends with the man, and soon after that, they ruled alongside each other. One giving us strength, the other giving us wisdom._

_But, as the years went by, the mysterious man became more and more cruel and demanding. Soon the people feared him and ran away at the sight of his shadow. Steve stood up to the cruel leader, and they fought in the broken castle the leader lived in for almost two years. In the very end, the cruel-hearted king destroyed Steve and gained control over the land as the world's __**leader**__._

_With a new sense of power, and blackened heart, Leader set out across the land and gained as many followers he could find. Soon, half of the lands people were under his command, ready to strike at any innocent village or family he desired. As the years went by, however, his malevolent ways became more and more subtle. Soon, people in the land could go amongst their lives, but could not help but live in the fear of the death that could be upon them at a moment's glance._

_As for Steve, they say he is in the depths of the Nether rotting in his burning tomb, waiting for Leader to join him down in his grave. Though a prophecy says that when the greatest threat to the world's existence is defeated, Minecraftia will rise again, along with its rightful king..._"

The group was silent for a few moments before Jason spoke up. "So… Steve's dead?" Raven shook her head. "No, not dead. Imprisoned."

"Who's Leader, exactly?" Jerome asked.

Raven hesitated, then opened her mouth to respond, but was cut off by a new voice from down the hallway.

"Raven, do you know where the carrots are? I can't find them anywhere!"

Raven sighed and turned towards the balcony that hung over the fireplace. "They're in the kitchen, Sheep, like always! The vegetation is always in the bottom chest on the far right."

"Oh… right." The voice replied.

The stairs creaked slightly and a small, white sheep emerged from the staircase. It was slightly bigger than a normal baby sheep and its eyes were facing forward instead of the sides. It looked at the group and blinked in surprise at the guys.

"Who are these guys?"

Dan gasped in surprise and everything else's eyes widened in shock.

Raven didn't notice and gestured to them all. "These are some new friends I met today. Dan, Adam, Jason, and Jerome. Guys, this is Sheep, my roommate."

Sheep nodded in agreement and walked over to a chest and took out a carrot and lifted it onto his back. "Yep. I've been Raven's roommate for about seven years now. Couldn't have been closer if we tried." The small mob smiled at Raven and waved a foreleg at the guys. "Alright, well I'm gonna get some sleep. It was nice meeting you guys."

With that, the mob turned and walked up the stairs and disappeared onto the second floor. The guys turned to Raven with a look of shock plastered on their faces.

"I…uh…he's…uh…" Dan stuttered, glancing at Raven in surprise.

"He's a small talking sheep? Yeah, he is." Raven replied, shrugging. Adam and Jerome glanced at each other with the same look and turned to Raven.

"And you're not at all fazed by that?!" They both asked at the same time.

Raven shrugged. "No, not really. I found him when he was a lamb. He had been experimented on in a lab run by Leader. Something about boosting an animal's intelligence. He had been a defect and they had tossed him out to die. I guess the defect was him being able to see properly and being able to develop speech. I found him, taught him how to speak properly, and we've been best friends ever since."

Jerome glanced up at the balcony where Sheep had gone and sighed. "Wow, that's just… I'm still trying to comprehend that he _talks_."

Raven smiled and giggled. "Yeah, my friend reacted the same way when he met Sheep too." She stared upstairs in a daze before shaking her head and directing her attention back to the guys. "Well, I'm guessing from what I saw earlier you guys don't really have somewhere to sleep tonight?" The group exchanged worried glances. "Mobs don't spawn at night, do they?"

Raven shook her head. "Not naturally, no. Spawners, however, will spawn them. They usually only spawn in the deeper forests and in the mountains." She shifted her eyes to the hall next to the stairs. "But, I still don't think sending you guys back out there would be very smart. I have a room made in case I need to have extra guests over, though that doesn't happen often, so it's more like a library now, but if you guys want, you can stay there."

The four male players exchanged relieved looks and all nodded fervently.

"Yes, please." They all said in unison.

Raven laughed and led them to a door down the hallway. Inside, there were four beds lined against the far wall, all in a perfect row. Bookshelfs were placed all over the place and the room was slightly cluttered from all the books scattered around.

"Wow, you sure do a lot of reading." Dan whistled, examining a small pile of books in a corner after a book about the world's history caught his attention.

The female player smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, well, my dad is kinda my teacher, and he's a big 'learning' guy. Sorry about the mess."

"It's fine." Jerome shrugged. "My room's been messier than this."

"That's true." Adam concurred, leaning over to Raven and whispered 'I once went in there and couldn't even see the floor.' The brunette chuckled and started heading out.

"Okay, I'll be upstairs if you guys need anything. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Raven." Everyone replied.

"And thanks, for everything." Dan added, holding up a few books he had found from the pile. "Is it okay if I read these?"

Raven nodded. "Read away." She closed the door and the group heard her footsteps fade away. "Night, guys!"

Jerome yawned suddenly and collapsed on the bed behind him, out cold completely. Adam, Jason, and Dan all rolled their eyes and went over to the three remaining beds. Dan put out all the torches except for one and used it's light to do some reading from the books Raven had let him borrow. Even so, it wasn't even half an hour before that light went out and the caveman's calm breathing could be heard.

Jason laid in bed, staring up at the darkened ceiling. He twiddled his thumbs, thinking about what happened to them that day. He frowned and turned his head to the side to look at Adam, who was in the bed next to him.

"Adam?"

There was a sound of something shifting then Adam's tired voice replied. "Yeah, Jason?"

"Do you… do you think we'll be able to go home?"

Adam opened his mouth to reply, but then closed it. He hadn't really thought about it for a while, but the more he thought about it, the more uncertain he became.

"I… I don't know, Jason. I don't know…"

Adam heard Jason sigh quietly and shift onto his side. "Me neither…"

The sunglasses-wearing player stared sympathetically at his best friend and closed his eyes. After a few minutes, both of the best friend's breathing slowed and the whole home had been pulled into a calming silence.

**_Woo, Sheep is here! The sarcastic, short, comedic-relief-giver, and condescending-at-times, Ovis-aries is here! Doesn't he have the most creative name ever? Totally original and not his species name in any way! Yeah! ;-; _**

**_Seriously now, he does have an actual name, but only Raven and her dad know it, because he hates it. (Not saying it until way later in the book, so just call him Sheep for now. And if you're at the point where his real name has been revealed and you're just rereading this, please don't spoil for other people. It be rude and not nice, and no one likes not-nice people._**


	5. Pillow Assault

**Chapter 5: Pillow Assault**

Jason's eyes slowly peeled open. He rubbed his eyes and stared up at the spruce wood ceiling that was above him. With a sudden remembrance of where he was, the astronaut glanced at the bed Adam had taken the night before and wasn't surprised to see that the bed was still occupied by the gold-loving player. Jerome's and Dan's beds were empty, but Adam was still sleeping, hugging his pillow like it was a teddy bear.

Jason smirked at the sight of his friend in such a ridiculous pose and whispered to him.

"Adam." Jason whispered, reaching over and gently tapped Adam's shoulder. Adam only grunted in response and shifted slightly, pulling his pillow closer.

"Adam!" The astronaut repeated, trying not to be too loud but still raising his voice slightly. The sunglasses–wearing player didn't respond at all to his friend's words.

Jason rolled his eyes and froze as they landed on his pillow. An evil grin grew across his face. With as much stealth he could muster, Jason pulled his pillow out from under him and flung it as hard as he could at his unprepared friend.

To say Adam's response was instantaneous would be an understatement. The gold lover cried out and arched his back forward until he was sitting up. He spat out a few feather from the pillow from his mouth and stared in shock at what had hit him. Putting two and two together, Adam turned to Jason and glared daggers at him.

"A simple 'Wake up, dude' would have sufficed."

Jason laughed and grabbed his pillow back and put it on his bed. "I tried that, man. You sleep like a sloth who hasn't slept in a week; it's nearly impossible to even get you to respond in your sleep!"

The gold lover rolled his eyes and the two headed out to the main room. Raven was making something in the furnaces, watching them closely, while Jerome was cutting some apple slices and putting them in a bowl with watermelon pieces. Dan was sitting on the couch with the fireplace still going, reading from the decent pile of books he had at his feet. Sheep was occupying a couch spot next to him, munching quietly on a small clump of wheat.

Jerome noticed Adam and Jason arrived and smiled.

"And the Sleeping Beauties are awake at last!" Jerome cheered, juggling an apple slice in response and then catching it in his mouth.

"Haha." Jason replied sarcastically, yet he couldn't help a small grin from appearing on his face.

"Sorry guys, but we didn't want to wake you up." Dan said.

"Naw, it's fine. You wouldn't have been able to wake me up anyway." Adam replied, shrugging while he and Jason shared a grin. He and Jason went over to the wooden table and Jerome slid the bowl of fruit over to them.

"Fruit salad for breakfast, boys!" Jerome said, bursting his chest with pride. "Made by yours truly."

"Woo, fruit!" Dan cheered, holding up the apple he had been eating.

"Thanks, dude." The astronaut said to the bacca, who smiled in return. Jason reached in to take a fruit out of the bowl when Adam screamed in horror.

Everything's head turned to Adam and Dan dropped the book he had been reading in surprise.

"What?!" Raven cried, reaching for her belt instinctively. "What happened?!"

Adam reached into the bowl and held up the slices of watermelon in horror.

"WE'VE SLAUGHTERED BASHUR!"

The room was silent for a few moments before Adam snickered and doubled over laughing. Dan tried to keep a straight face, but couldn't help but laugh as the gold lover _once again_ joked about their watermelon friend. Jerome and Jason started snickered too and soon the four of them all laughing.

Raven was just staring at them with a raised eyebrow. Sheep's head poked up over the couch and made a 'cuckoo' gesture with his forehead at Raven and gestured with his eyes towards the four guys. Raven silently scolded him and Sheep ducked down again out of view.

Jason finally noticed Raven's confused stare and was able to stop his laughing to explain to her what was going on. "We have a friend whose character in Minecraft is a watermelon humanoid so we always joke about how watermelon slices and melons are his children and/or his remains."

Raven's face turned into an "O" shape and she nodded in understand. A sound of a bell going off caused Raven to turn around and take something out of the furnace behind her. Twenty-five porkchops were all lined in five rows of five on a large sheet and were sizzling with the heat.

"What are those for?" Adam asked, finally over his giggle spree.

"I'm going mining later for some coal." Raven replied. She went over to a chest and opened it. "I only got about three pieces left, and that's not gonna last long. Food runs low pretty quickly, so I figured I might as well make some meat for us to have when we head down there."

"Wait, 'us'?" Dan asked, turning his head to face her.

Raven put her hands behind her back. "Well, I figured that since you guys are literally new here, you'd probably not want to get separated from me, and I thought you guys would probably want to go mining with me, especially since mobs are rarely a problem when mining, so…"

"Are you kidding?!" Jerome interrupted a huge grin of his face. "WE'D LOVE TO DO THAT!"

"Yeah, that sounds awesome!" Adam added, smiling.

"Mining is one of the funniest things to do." Dan said, though he paused to mumble 'Unless you run into some demon birds' under his breath.

"You guys really want to go with me?" Raven asked. Everyone nodded.

The female player glanced at all four of them and shrugged. "Alright, then. We'll leave in a few minutes." She pointed at the bowl of fruit as she packed the porkchops into a brown satchel. "Eat up." Raven headed up the stairs and disappeared onto the second level.

As if in a trance, everyone went over to the bowl and took out a fruit.

"So… how'd you guys sleep?" Adam asked, making small talk.

"Well, probably not as well as you two." Jerome said, smirking at the two of them. "You looked like you were making out with your pillow."

"It was a comfy pillow." Adam reasoned, turning red in the face.

"C'mon, knock it off, guys." Jason interrupted good-naturedly. "I think all of us needed a lot of sleep after yesterday."

"Yeah," Dan replied, turning his apple over in his hands. He looked like he wanted to say something but was apprehensive about it. "Do… do you guys think anyone's wondering where we are?"

The trio looked at Dan, surprised by the caveman's question. "I can't imagine why they wouldn't." Jason replied, suddenly feeling homesick. "They must be so worried about us."

Jerome stared at the floor with a sad look. "I hope Mitch is okay." The bacca felt suddenly guilty for what emotions he had probably unintentionally caused his best friend to experience. A hand on his shoulder snapped him out of his depression-like state and the bacca looked up to see Adam looking at him with determination.

"Jerome, you'll see Mitch again. Don't worry about it. That's a promise. We're not leaving here without you. And we _will_ get back home."

"That's right." Dan added, making everything look at him. "I promise, with my _life_, that I won't leave this world without you guys. No matter what happens, I won't leave without any of you. That's a promise."

"I promise that, too." Jason added.

"Me too." said Adam.

Jerome looked at them all and a happy smile slowly grew on his face. "Me too."

Raven and Sheep watching from the overhang above the fireplace. Raven watched as the four of them leaned in and had a group hug. "They really do care about each other." She remarked.

Sheep turned to her and raised an imaginary eyebrow. "Did you even doubt they were?"

Raven looked at her four-legged friend and shrugged. "I thought they were spies at first, I'll admit that. But after what Jerome told me, in the woods, I know they are just as harmless and he was when he got here."

"You don't think they could know each other, do you?"

Raven glanced at the players below them and back at her roommate. "I really don't know. I guess we'll find out when I bring them over to him sometime."

"You're gonna bring them to him?!"

"Well, eventually, yeah. They have the same problem he has, and most likely, they came from the same place, so bringing them together would help both of them at the same time."

She smiled slightly. "Plus, that guy's gotta get more friends than me, you, and Lapin."

Sheep nodded. "I know, all he does these days is just archery and talking with your dad." The small mob got a sympathetic look on his face. "He must really want to get home. You think he has family that's worried about him?"

Raven stared down at the group, catching the attention of the bacca. She waved and stood up, ready to leave. "I'm not sure, but I think he's not just wanting to get home for his family. I think he wants to get home for someone else, too."

**_WHOA, Raven's friend is from the real world! WHAT, SPOILERS, DANG! Who is it? Do they know the guys? Is Raven onto something about him wanting to get home for someone else? Who knows?! (Though I think I dropped enough hints for people who are observant enough can figure it out) If you think you know who it is, or already know who it is, don't spoil for the other readers. You might ruin the surprise for everyone else who's new to the story. No one like a not-nice person :P Anyways, stay awesome, and have an awesome day! - Five_**


	6. Missing Family

**Chapter 6: Missing Family?**

Raven called the group over to a door on the second level of the house. She led them up to a large stone room with grass floors and flowers growing from it. A large oak tree was planted next to a small pond with vines growing from it.

A horse's whinny caught the group's attention and they turned to see a gray stallion walking towards him. Raven reached out and the horse nuzzled her hand.

"This is William, my mode of transportation." The horse whinnied as if to agree and lowered its head to nuzzle Sheep. The small mob groaned and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, William, I'm glad to see you too." Though when the horse licked his cheek Sheep couldn't help but smile.

Jason walked over to William and glanced over at Raven. "Can I?"

Raven nodded and gestured for him to move closer. "Go ahead, just don't startle him."

Jason reached out and gently petted William's head. The horse glanced at up at the spaceman and snorted, rubbing his head against his hand.

Jason smiled and then took notice William's form. The horse look like a normal horse would, but had hints of the mob model from the game as well. The muscle lines and the bone structure took the shape of rectangles and had very defined areas like where the head met the neck and where the legs bent and started.

Jason slowly reached up and touched Williams ears and the horse suddenly whinnied loudly. Jason gasped and jumped back, landing hard on his back. Raven rushed over and calm William down, gently rubbing the top of his snout. She turned to Jason who was staring at the horse with surprise.

"Sorry, he doesn't like having his ears touched."

Jason stared and nodded, pushing himself up and onto his feet.

Raven stopped petting William and kneeled down to Sheep's level. She rubbed Sheep's head affectionately. "Take care of William while we're gone, okay?"

Sheep nodded and waved as the five players walked out of the room and exited through another hidden piston entrance. "Bye, guys! Good luck!"

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The group hadn't walked for about an hour before they found a large cave system. It was a deep hole in the ground that was too steep to climb down, so Raven took out a rope and tied it to a rock before slowly descending down into the hole.

After lighting up the area she called up to the rest of the group that it was safe to climb down. Climbing down took a little longer than expected, though that mainly because at one point Jason almost fell after losing his grip, but everyone had managed to get down safely.

The cave system divided into two separate directions. One lead down and to the left and the other went straight ahead and down.

Raven reached into her satchel and pulled out two and a half stacks of torches and twenty pieces of beef. She divided them out evenly and then handed them all a sword, a pickaxe.

She then reached in her satchel again and gave Adam a crafting table, a bucket of water and some wood.

"In case you need to make more torches or run into lava." She told him, the gold-lover understanding quickly.

"Okay, since there are two different ways, we should split into two groups. Adam, you, Jason, and Dan go down that left tunnel, and me and Jerome will go down the other."

Everyone nodded and the group split up.

Once Adam and the others were out of sight, Jerome pulled out a torch. It lit the way through the tunnel as Raven placed some torches on the walls as they went.

It didn't take long before Jerome saw some pale pink-ish ore jutting out of some stone. "Found some iron!" He called, making Raven turn around.

"Sweet! Make sure to get it." Raven replied, smiling, walking up to some coal she had spotted.

Jerome looked at the pickaxe in his hand and starting mining at the ore. Surprisingly, it only took a few hits for the entire block to disappear and shrink down into a small floating cube on the ground. Jerome picked it up and placed it in his backpack Raven had given him. He quickly mined the other three pieces before turning and running after Raven, who had started exploring deeper into the tunnel.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"See any diamonds or iron?" Jason called, looking behind at the others as he mined some lapis lazuli.

"Nothing over here!" Dan called. "Just some coal."

"What about you, Adam?" Jason called, raising an eyebrow as he didn't hear the sunglasses-wearing player respond. "Adam?"

Adam was standing in front of some gold ore. He heard Jason called for him, but couldn't bring himself to answer as the image of the golden ore embedded in the rock had mesmerized him. The perfect yellow metal showed Adam's reflection, shining brightly from the torch Adam was holding.

"Adam?" A hand rested on his shoulder and Adam jumped and saw that Dan had walked over to him.

"Dude, you scared me!" Adam said, making what sounded like a tired laugh. Dan looked at where Adam had been staring and raised an eyebrow.

"You okay?"

Adam blinked then nodded, smiling. "Yeah, I'm fine, dude." Dan stared at him before giving an unsure 'Okay…' before heading back to where Jason was.

Adam started to follow him, but stopped and glanced back at the gold ore. Staring for a few seconds, he walked over and took out his pickaxe. He mined it and put it in his satchel before running off to where Dan had gone.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Jerome, are you okay?"

The bacca jumped as Raven appeared beside him, looking concerned. "You haven't said anything for the past ten minutes."

"It's nothing," Jerome assured her, sighing. "It's just…"

"Missing family?" Raven guessed. Jerome turned to her in surprise.

"How did you know?"

Raven shrugged and looked off in the distance. "I miss my parents all the time, and when I think about them I always have that same look on my face."

Jerome frowned. "Wait, I thought you said your dad teaches you."

"His name's Lapin." Raven corrected. "And no, he's my foster dad. A guardian, you could say."

"Oh."

The two were silent for a bit before Jerome spoke up. "If I may, what happened to your parents?"

The soft glow of the torch illuminated Raven's frown. "They were murdered. By Leader."

Jerome's eyes widened. "How?"

Raven's eyes glazed over and stared off in the distance. "It was when I was seven…"

_"__Dad, what's going on?" Seven-year-old Raven asked her father. Her father glanced worriedly at the door, where Raven could hear people yelling. He reached down and picked Raven up into his arms. _

_"__Raven, sweetie, we need to leave."_

_"__But it's past bedtime."_

_Despite the dire situation, Aaron couldn't help but smile at his daughter's innocence. "Well, tonight there is no bedtime. But we need to go, it's dangerous here."_

_"__Are the people yelling bad?" Raven asked, her eyes growing in fear. Aaron hugged her. "Yes, they're bad people, Raven. But me and Mommy won't let them hurt you. I promise." Raven hugged her father back, but still looked scared._

_Raven's mother ran into the hallway leading to the back door. "Aaron, they're almost inside!"_

_Aaron's eyes widened. "What about the Lazuli's?" Raven's mother looked at her husband with sad eyes and he stared out the window, looking out at the neighbor's home. It was ablaze with smoke coming out of the windows. "No, Lapin…"_

_"__Aaron, you need to go!"_

_Aaron's eyes widened and he turned to Raven's mother. "'We'?!"_

_She nodded. "I'll hold them off, you get yourself and Raven somewhere safe."_

_"__No, Elizabeth, I refuse to leave you! We'll go together! We can make it!" Elizabeth shook her head and she looked at her husband. "We won't have time. They'll break down the door before we even get outside. I can give you enough time to get into the woods behind the house."_

_"__Elizabeth, I… I can't leave you." Aaron choked. Elizabeth started crying and took his hand, holding it to her chest. "Promise me, you'll get Raven and you somewhere safe. Please!"_

_Aaron stared, tears starting to fall, and hugged Elizabeth. "I promise…"_

_"__Mommy, why aren't you coming with us?" Raven asked, starting to cry. "You need to come too!"_

_Elizabeth turned to her daughter and hugged her. "Baby, I'm sorry, but I can't come with you."_

_"__Why not?" Raven asked, starting to cry. Elizabeth leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "I need to go stop the bad people from hurting you and Daddy. Like how we promised."_

_"__Will you come back?"_

_Elizabeth paused and then reached into her pocket, pulling out a silver locket necklace._

_"__Here. This was going to be your present for your eighth birthday." Elizabeth explained, reaching over and fastening it around Raven's neck. "As long as you keep that necklace on you, Daddy and I will always be with you."_

_Raven stared at it in awe and looked up at her mother, nodding. "I love you, Mommy." She said, tears running down her face. Elizabeth smiled and kissed her daughter's forehead for the last time. "I love you, Raven."_

_Elizabeth looked up and kissed Aaron with all the passion she could muster, tears falling down her face. "I love you…"_

_"__I love you too." Aaron whispered, holding a hand to her cheek before Elizabeth turned and ran towards the front of the house. Aaron gently took Raven's free hand, her other one was clutching the necklace, and led her to the back door._

_"__Come on, Raven, we need to get somewhere safe."_

_Just then, a scream froze them both in their tracks. Aaron's eyes widened after instantly recognizing that voice and turned back to the front of the house._

_"__ELIZABETH!"_

_Just then, a large explosion blew the back of the house into smithereens. Raven screamed as she landed in the grass in the backyard, a couple feet away from the woods behind her house. She sat up and gasped as she noticed her father lying on the grass a little ways away from her. _

_He had was on his back and his chest was barely moving. Raven notice his clothing was smoking slightly. Aaron had been caught directly in the chest and had been thrown back by the explosion._

_"__Daddy!" Raven cried, kneeling beside her father. Her heart jumped when Aaron groaned and slowly opened his eyes._

_"__Daddy, come on, we need to go!" Raven said, grabbing his arm and trying unsuccessfully to pull him across the grass._

_"__Raven, stop, please." Aaron urged, making his daughter stop and look at him with tears running down her face. "I couldn't get up even if I wanted to. I can't feel my legs."_

_Raven glanced at her father's legs but was puzzled when she didn't see anything really wrong with them. "But they look fine."_

_"__Raven, listen to me." Aaron said, his voice barely a whisper. "You need to run into those woods and run as fast as you can. Find somewhere safe, go to New Blockington, or Minecraftia, somewhere where you can be safe."_

_"__What about you and Mommy?" Raven asked, choking back a sob._

_Aaron weakly lifted up a hand and wiped away Raven's tears. "Don't worry about us, Raven. Just run into those woods and find somewhere safe. Take care of yourself, and don't let other people control you or scare you. Make sure you eat three times a day, and don't forget to keep reading, you're so good at it already."_

_He held her hand and squeezed it. "I love you, Raven, with all my heart." He touched her locket. "Never forget me and your mother, and whenever you feel alone, just open the locket and you won't feel alone anymore. I love you."_

_"__I love you too, Daddy." Raven whispered, squeezing her father's hand._

_A few voices caught of their attention._

_"__Go." Aaron said firmly, but kindly. Raven took one last look at her father, then kissed his forehead and ran towards the woods, disappearing into the trees._

_Aaron stared up at the sky, taking in his last breathes. "Notch, please watch over my daughter. Make sure she's safe at all times, and make sure she doesn't live alone. Let her live among those who love her, and people she loves in return." He smiled at the thought of Elizabeth and Raven. "I love you both, with all my heart…"_

_With that, Aaron's eyes closed, and his exhaled his last breath, his form lying still as the glow of the burning house illuminated his body._

"I was in those woods for a day or two before I met my first foster family. After that family, I was on my own for a few weeks before I met Lapin, my dad's old friend, and he took me in. I've been living with him ever since." Raven finished, turning to her bacca friend.

Jerome was staring at her with a mixture of shock and sympathy. Before she knew what was happening, her vision was blocked by a mass or brown fur and black fabric.

"Raven, I'm so sorry…" Jerome said, hugging his friend. Raven was surprised at first, but slowly raised her hands and returned the hug.

"Thanks, Jerome."

She pulled apart from the hug and reached into her hoodie, pulling out a silver locket on an iron chain. "This is the same necklace she gave me before they died." She opened it and Jerome peered inside to see a photo of a young couple and a baby.

The man had a mop of messy black curls, a trimmed beard, and warm brown eyes. The woman standing next to him had long wavy brown hair that was styled in a loose ponytail and jade green eyes. The woman was holding a small child together who had brown eyes and an array of brown curls on her head. The child was grinning and the woman was looking down at the child affectionately while the man was holding his hand over hers, gazing at the two of them with a warm smile.

"Those are your parents?" Jerome asked, staring at the photo. Raven nodded, and tilted the locket so Jerome could see the tiny, engraved message on the other side of the locket.

_'__Raven, we love you eternally and always remember that we are always with you, no matter what. Love, Mom and Dad'_

"So, this is what they were gonna give you on your eighth birthday?" Jerome asked. Raven nodded.

"I, uh… guess it's too late to say 'Happy Birthday', then?" Raven laughed and Jerome smiled for succeeding in making his friend laugh.

"Okay, alright, enough chit-chat. I think we've been talking for too long. The others probably found seven stacks of diamonds during the time we were talking."

"NEVER!" Jerome shouted, whipping out of pickaxe and running off into the cave. "JEROME ALWAYS FINDS THE MOST DIAMONDS!"

"Why are you talking in third person all of a sudden?" Raven asked, grinning as she ran after Jerome with a torch.

There was a pause. "…JEROME DOESN'T NEED TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION, HE'S TOO COOL TO ANSWER PITIFUL QUESTIONS LIKE THAT!"

The cave echoed with Raven and Jerome's laughter as the two ran further down the cave, searching for diamonds and coal.

**Woo, third person for the win! Wow, I'm loading these chapters like the bee's knees, holy magicarp! Anyways, I'm gonna go sleep now, because I spent the whole day drawing, writing, and watching Markiplier's 2014 October live stream. Those scary stories and rap battle was he funniest thing I've seen in all week. Goodnight, my friends! *head slams onto keyboard and begins snoring* WAIT, I almost forgot! I'm almost done with the rewriting of the first ten chapters of this book! Once those are all done and posted, the next seven (Which are already written :3) Will be up faster than you can say: Potatos are majestic! … Okay, say it slower than that. Slower… slower… there, perfect! Anyways, I'll see you guys in the next Author's Note. Stay awesome! -Five**


	7. Complications

**Chapter 7: Complications**

"Diamonds!" Jerome cheered, grinning as he found a bright blue metal sticking out of the rock before him.

"You found some?!" Raven asked, poking her head around the corner.

"Yeah! One… two… three… five diamonds!" Jerome exclaimed, smiling at the shining bright stones in is head.

"Sweet, you can make a sword and a pick with that!" Raven replied.

"Or a helmet! Or…" Jerome suddenly frowned and his eyes glazed over. "… an axe."

"What's wrong?" The brunette player asked, looking at her furry friend with concern.

"It's just… me and my friend would make diamond axes all the time and use them as weapons. We called them Betty all the time. He used a bow and sword most of the time and I would use the axe. We were unstoppable team most of the time."

"What was your friend's name?" Raven asked innocently.

"Mitch." Jerome replied.

"Hm… Mitch and Jerome, definitely sounds like it could be a dynamic duo."

Jerome smiled at her and tossed the diamonds into his bag. "Yeah, we're best friends. Always were and always will be."

"Well, I hope you two reunite someday." Raven said, smiling. She looked into her bag and counted the contents.

"Okay, so we got three and a half stacks of coal, a stack and fifteen pieces of iron, twenty-two gold, and about forty-four pieces of lapis."

"And five diamonds." Jerome added, pulling out a diamond for emphasis.

"Haha, yeah right, and five diamonds."

"We're the best miners ever!" Jerome cheered, causing Raven to smile.

"Are you always this hyper and loud?" She asked, trying not to laugh.

"Only on Wednesdays!" Jerome replied, making a goofy grin.

Raven raised an eyebrow. "What's Wednesday?"

Jerome stopped smiling and rubbed his head. "Oh, uh… it's a day of the week."

"I know what it is, doofus!" Raven laughed, elbowing Jerome. "I'm just pulling your leg. Our world's may be utterly different, but there are some things we share."

Jerome smiled sheepishly. "Right, sorry."

"Don't worry about it."

The brunette player reached over and pulled out a torch. "Alright, let's head back to the others." She pulled out a golden clock and glanced at it. "It's almost sundown, so we better head back soon. Finding a way back in the dark isn't very fun."

Raven started heading back up the tunnel towards the intersection and Jerome followed after her, putting the diamond back into his satchel and picking up his pickaxe.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"AAAAHHHH!"

Dan screaming caused both Jason and Adam to turn away from their ore.

"Dan, are you okay?" Adam cried, running towards the direction of the scream.

The caveman was backed against the corner of the dead end he had found. A bat was flying around his head, squeaking loudly from being frightened. Dan had his legs pulled up to his chest and was covering his head with his hands.

"Get it away from me! Get it away!"

Jason and Adam exchanged confused looks and Adam walked forward, gently swatting at the bat. It squeaked in fear and fly off past Jason and into the cave, disappearing.

"Did you seriously get spooked by a bat?" Jason asked, starting to grin.

Dan sighed and got to his feet. "Hey, that _bat_ scared the crap out of me!" Dan retorted. He spat out the word "bat" like it was venom. "There's a reason why I call them demon birds. And that helped proved my point."

The caveman noticed the two of them biting their lips and he sighed, rolling his eyes. "Fine. Go ahead and laugh."

His two friends were silent for a few seconds before bursting out laughing.

"Oh my gosh, I can't believe you got scared by a bat!" Adam said, trying to speak through his laughter.

Jason laughed too, but was able to calm himself down after noticing Dan's deadpan expression. "Okay, Dan, we're sorry, but that was just too funny!"

Dan rolled his eyes and grumbled something inaudible under his breath the two didn't hear.

"Hey, guys!" A voice behind them called and the three of them turned to see Raven and Jerome walking towards them.

"Oh, hey!" Dan grinned, forgetting the embarrassing event that happened moments prior. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We just finished emptying our side of the cave system, so we figured it'd be time to head back." Jerome answered, lifting his satchel up to prove his point.

"Yeah, it's almost nighttime up there. We should head back if we want to get back before…" Raven trailed off as she noticed Jason and Adam recovering from their laughing spree. "What's up with them?"

"Oh, Dan got scared by a b-" Dan slapped his hand over Adam's mouth before the gold-lover could finish.

"Nothing! It's nothing!" Dan said hastily, causing Adam to roll his eyes. The caveman suddenly cried out and pulled his hand away from Adam's mouth. "Did you just lick my hand?!"

Adam grinned evilly while Dan rolled his eyes. "Maybe…"

"You're so immature."

"Says the guy who just screamed like a little girl five minutes ago!"

"It scared me!" Dan defended, waving his arms as if they would help prove his point. Jason stepped between them and held up a hand.

"Guys, just drop it. Adam, quit acting like a little kid." Adam frowned and Dan smiled in victory. "Dan, that goes for you, too." The caveman's smile diminished and the two sighed.

"Fine." They both said in unison.

"Anyways," Jason continued, looking at the bacca and brunette player beside them. "What'd you guys find over there?"

"We found a ton of coal, iron, lapis, and gold." Raven replied, looking into her bag again. "That should be plenty of coal for a while."

"I found diamonds!" Jerome cheered, smiling as he held out the shining blue ore for his friends to see.

"Whoa, cool!" Jason remarked. He lifted one up and held it in his hands. "Wow, they're a lot lighter than I expected them to be."

"Yeah, they're pretty light. Well, at least before you make them into armor or tools." Raven replied, taking the diamonds and putting them back in Jerome's bag. "Let's try not to lose them, though. Diamonds are pretty hard to come by, so hopefully we won't run into any lava or tall ledges on the way back."

Adam lifted up his pickaxe and placed it in the holder attached to his satchel. "Okay, let's head back."

"Okay," Raven replied, turning and starting up to the top of the tunnel. "Now if I remember, the exit is up high, so since the rope is still up there, we'll climb up one by one, and then head nor-"

She got cut off as the sound of something hitting the ground echoed through the tunnel. Voices could be heard up ahead.

"C'mon, there might be some ore left over in here!"

"Yeah, and maybe even a mineshaft. Someone could have leftover loot in a chest down here." A second voice replied.

Raven's eyes widened. She turned to the left and right and saw a small side tunnel that was big enough to be shrouded by the dark. She gestured the group other and pointed inside, nervously glancing back up the tunnel.

"Everyone, get in, quick!"

The group exchanged worried glances then jumped down into the hole. Jason, Dan, and Adam backed up against the wall while Jason looked up at Raven.

"Raven, c'mon!" Jason hissed, his eyes darting towards the noise worriedly.

The brunette player glanced down the mine hesitantly before turning and jumping down the hole. Jason reached out to grab her before she hit the floor, but instead of catching her, Raven collided right into him. Not expecting the extra force, Jason stumbled back and they both fell to the ground.

Before they could get up, the voices sounded right outside the tunnel. Everyone froze where they were, looking up at the tunnel entrance fearfully.

"So, tell me why we're here again?" A voice, clearly male, asked, sounding annoyed.

"I told you, we're low of resources, you dingus!" The other voice replied, stopping outside the tunnel's entrance, not facing it. The voice had an Irish accent, making it easy to tell you who was speaking. "We're on our last stack of iron and we need to find as much as we can get!"

"This wouldn't be a problem if we didn't expect that dude's offer." The first voice replied, grumbling.

"We wouldn't have been able to earn that iron even if we wanted to!" The supposedly Irish replied, sounding exasperated. "We wouldn't even know where to start looking for those guys! All we were told was what they looked like!"

"I think a man covered in fur and a black suit and tie and a blue astronaut is noticeable enough."

Everyone's heart stopped inside the tunnel. Adam saw Jerome silently gasp as his eyes quickly darted towards Jason and then down at himself. The two exchanged startled glances and gulped in unison. Jason felt Raven grip Jason's arm he touched her shoulder reassuringly, though it didn't do much to calm her.

"Whatever, I don't trust that guy. Besides, we don't even know why they want them anyways, it's not our problem." The second player retorted.

The first voice sighed and they started to fade away. "I remember a time when someone's problem was _everyone_'_s_ problem…"

"Yeah…well, welcome to reality, dude." The second replied stolidly. The two's footsteps faded away and the cave was once again plunged back into the dead silence it held before.

Dan hesitantly stood up and looked outside the tunnel. After a quick inspection he turned back to the group. "It's all clear."

One by one, the three of them climbed out. Raven sighed. "Crap, this is bad…"

Jason shrugged and smiled lightly. "Well, it could be worse. They could've found us and we would've been in a _way_ worse situation."

Raven shrugged, still looking worried. "Yeah, I guess…" She turned to Jason and the two suddenly realized how close their faces were. During the stumble, Raven had fallen on top of Jason and the two's faces were currently inches apart. They both laughed awkwardly and Raven quickly got off him, allowing the blue spaceman to get up. Raven wordlessly climbed out of the tunnel, Jason following after her.

Adam raised an eyebrow at them as they caught up with them, gears turning in his head. He stared at Jason for a moment before turning back to the group.

Jerome was already making sure the rope was secure and stepped aside for Raven to climb up. After a quick thank you, the brunette player effortlessly climbed up the rope, reaching the top in seconds and peered over the edge as the others followed. After they all reached the top, Raven reached over and untied the rope and rolled it back up and dropped it into her bag.

She noticed them all staring with confused look and shrugged. "They won't be able to catch up to us this way. Besides, it's not like they're stuck down there." The five blinked and then nodded in agreement and Raven began leading the way back to their base.

The walk back was silent, everyone not really not wanting to talk. They all seemed to be thinking the same thoughts and it unnerved all of them.

Someone knew who they were, and they were looking for them.

**Oh dang! This just got interesting! Sorry for not updating for a while, I've been busy with school and such and haven't had much time to write. But I'm here now, and hopefully I'll be able to get a lot more in the coming days! Stay awesome, and hope you enjoyed! -Five**


	8. Unexpected Addition

**Chapter 8: Benja Canada**

"WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!" Adam yelled, the silent barrier that been present until they reached the base shattered.

Everyone jumped and turned to him surprise. Adam was shaking, going into full panic-mode.

"Why do those guys know us? Why are they looking for us? Better yet, why does someone want to find us and why are they hiring people to find us? We don't even know them! Do they want to kill us! What did we even do!? Why is this happening?! What are we gonna do! What are we-"

**_SMACK!_**

Adam got cut off as Dan slapped Adam hard across the face. Adam turned to Dan in shock, the caveman looking at him seriously.

"Adam. Calm down." Dan said, his voice carrying an unsettling amount of seriousness in it. Adam could only stare and nod slowly, gulping.

"Why… why do they know us?" He asked weakly, rubbing the place where Dan had hit him.

Dan sighed and shrugged. "I really don't know, and frankly, I'm scared to find out."

Jason only watched and turned to see how Raven was processing all this and was startled to see that she was absent.

"Raven?" He asked, turning around and looking around, not seeing her anywhere. This caught everyone's attention and the group looked around the main room, not seeing their brunette friend anywhere.

Everyone jumped at the sound of something metal hit the floor and they all turned to see Raven walking down the steps carrying a chest filled with armor and weapons. She set it on the table, her face an unnerving state of stolid.

"Raven?" Jerome asked, his brow furrowing in concern. Raven didn't reply, but merely reached into the chest and pulled out an iron axe and leather cap, tossing it to him. She pulled out two iron swords and matching helmets and handed those to Adam and Dan. She gave Jason an iron sword and then gave everyone a leather chest plate.

"I'm taking you guys to my friend's place. Now." She stated.

"Raven, do you think that's a good idea?" Sheep asked, now entering the room, carrying a small bundle on his back. "I mean, do we really want to bring him into this?"

Raven nodded, flipping her hood up and pulling on a pair of gloves. "If there's one person in this world that could understand and help me with this, it's him."

Sheep started to object but a quick glare from Raven made him close his mouth and reply with a small 'okay'. Raven grabbed some food items out of a chest and placed them in her satchel. She turned to all of us and frowned.

"I don't feel like you guys will be safe here, so I'm gonna take you to my friend's house. If anyone can help us with this, it's him."

Raven led the group towards the back entrance, letting Adam go first. "Wait up in the garden till I come up there."

Sheep started walking towards the stairs. "Alright, I'll go get my collar and we can-"

"Sheep, you're staying here." Raven said grimly.

Sheep turned sharply to face her. "What?! But you said it's not safe here!"

"I'm sealing up the back entrance that's connected to here. You and William are staying in the garden until I come back to get you guys."

Sheep opened his mouth to stay something then closed it. "But, I wanna come…"

Raven smiled weakly and patted Sheep's forehead. "Go grab your stuff and I'll seal up the door when you're ready." Sheep nodded reluctantly then turned and headed up the stairs, taking them slowly. He glanced at Raven then bowed his head, disappearing upstairs.

"Don't you think you were a little harsh on him?" Jerome asked, looking sympathetically in Sheep's direction. Raven frowned at him then sighed.

"The cold climate my friend's house is in would be too cold even for him. He'd freeze to death out there, so I'm going to wait until we move on to my dad's to get him. It's for the best."

Jerome merely nodded and headed up the stairs. Sheep quietly walked down the steps, a dark red collar wrapped around his neck and a small bag with wheat inside on his back. He looked up at Raven then sighed, walking through the door.

Raven frowned as her small hoofed friend moved away from the stairs then reluctantly broke the door connecting them to the house then filled it with spruce planks, sealing them off from the house. She placed a couple smooth stone blocks behind it then turned and followed Sheep up the stairs.

Everyone was waiting for them at the top of the stairs. Sheep went over to William and dropped his bag on the ground, his larger equine friend looking down at him concerned.

Raven looked back at the stairway and sighed. "Everyone ready?" The group nodded and they all moved towards the exit of the garden. The brunette player turned to her two hooved friends and waved slowly. "I'll be back soon, guys."

Raven almost fell over as a small white blur collided into her and wrapped itself around her leg. Sheep was clutching her leg like a lifeline, looking up at her with sad eyes.

"Promise me you'll be safe!" He begged, looking at her, his large, dark eyes looking up at her with a look that could rival a begging dog. Raven blinked and then gave a sad smile, reaching down and hugging her small white mob.

"I will, just promise _me_ that you won't run off before I get back, unless it's an absolute emergency."

Sheep nodded quickly. "Okay." He nudged her with his hoof. "I'm gonna make sure you live up to that promise, missy."

The two shared a smiled that silently said that the tension they had shared before was gone, no official apology was necessary. Raven patted William's head and she turned and ran after the guys who were already waiting outside for her.

"Be safe!" She called over shoulder as she disappeared from view.

Sheep smiled and William leaned down, nudging Sheep with enough accidental force to push him to the side. He playfully glared at William then picked up his wheat bag, dragging it over to the stable. "Well, William, looks like we're roommates."

William neighed in response and followed his smaller friend into the stables.

…

The group had ventured long past the cave and by the time they had reached the snow forest it was already dark. Raven held a torch, followed by Dan, then Jerome, then Adam, who also was carrying a torch, and Jason who followed in the back.

A blizzard had started not long after they had entered and Jerome was quickly realizing the logic to why Raven didn't want Sheep to come along. The coat didn't do much to his already warm fur, but from what he was noticing from everyone else he realized that he was incredibly lucky to have this built-in heater in his body. He cringed at the thought of Sheep walking through the snow with only the wool on his back. The poor guy wouldn't have stood a chance in this weather.

Raven squinted as she looked ahead, walking through the nearly covered trail that led to the small snow village, which was their destination. In the distance, she could make out a few faint lights, one of them a little further away from the others. Eyeing that one, she tried her hardest to yell over the wind.

"I see it, just a little bit further!"

Adam breathed a sigh of relief, rubbing his arm in an effort to stay warm. His sunglasses helped keep the snow out of his eyes, but it was still very hard to see through the dark trees. Not to mention the snow was blurring out a few objects.

He almost didn't notice that Jason was starting to slow down behind him until he noticed his footsteps were getting quieter.

"Jason?" Adam turned and gasped to see Jason stumbling in the snow.

"I'm…coming…" Jason replied, his voice quiet and weak. He tried to take another step but instead collapsed into the snow facedown, his arms going limb.

"JASON!" Adam yelled, catching the Jerome and Dan's attention. The gold-lover kneeled beside his astronaut friend and flipped him onto his back. He lifted off Jason's visor and fear gripped at him as he saw that his friend was unconscious. Adam reached out to touch his face but reeled back when he found that Jason's skin was ice cold.

"Raven, Jason's unconscious!" Dan called. Raven's eyes widened and she frantically looked around for the lights. She finally regained sight of it, the snow making her vision worse and held her torch up higher.

"We're almost there! I can see it! If we can get him over to that house we can warm him up!" She explained over the wind.

Jerome quickly yanked off the coat Raven had given him and wrapped Jason in it. The blue-eyed astronaut was still unconscious but they could see small clouds of air come from his mouth as he exhaled.

"Jerome, what are you…" Dan started as Jerome finished wrapping Jason in his coat and picked him up effortlessly. Jerome adjusted so he was carrying Jason bridal style and close to his chest before turning to Dan, gesturing down at himself.

"Fur, dude."

Dan nodded in understanding and took hold of Adam's arms and yanked him back up to his feet as Jerome took off after Raven. The gold-lover was staring where Jerome had gone with intense worry. His caveman friend frowned and started leading Adam towards the direction the group was moving in.

"C'mon Adam, Jason will be fine."

Adam's eyes flickered to Dan's before he glanced back at Jerome, who was still holding Jason tightly, trying to transfer his body heat into his. "Do you really think that?"

Dan tried to say something but found that he at a loss for words. In truth he really didn't know, but he did know for one thing; he was scared to death.

Jerome held Jason as he ran after Raven, who was running ahead with equal speed. He looked down at Jason, who was still trembling uncontrollably. The astronaut's eyes opened and he weakly looked up at Jerome. His mouth moved as if he was trying to say something but no sound came out.

"Hang in there, Jason. Just hang on." Jerome begged, gripping his friend tightly and picking up his pace.

Raven reached the light and the group could now see it was a house. It was a small, one-story spruce cabin with white stained glass windows. The lights were out save one outside on the small porch was built in front of the door.

Raven leaped up the stairs and knocked on it three times, then once, then twice. There was a sound of something hitting the floor then the sound of footsteps. The door opened and the shadow of a figure appeared on the other side.

"Raven, what are doing here? Don't you know how late it is?" The person asked, the voice sounding obviously male.

"No time to explain!" Raven interrupted. "I have a friend out here who's in critical condition."

There was a slight pause before the player responded. "How bad?"

"Hypothermia. I think he's dying from it."

The door opened all the way and footsteps faded into the house. "I'll get the potion, you get him on the table. Try and keep him warm."

Raven walked inside, Jerome and rest after her. Dan closed the door behind them and Raven guided Jerome away from it.

The house was dimly lit, with a few torches scattered throughout the room providing large patches of shadows throughout the house. The left side of the house was built as a kitchen and storage area, filled with furnaces and chests, with a spruce table with a few chairs planted in the center of it. A small divider blocked the entryway to the hallway and a living room with a few couches and a red rug was arranged on the other side. The hallway led down to two doors and a small spiral staircase leading downstairs with a faint glow coming from it.

Raven moved all the chairs away from the table and Jerome laid Jason across it. Raven gently took rearranged the coat to make sure the astronaut was receiving a fair amount of warmth and glanced nervously to the staircase down the hall.

Adam was staring at Jason with intense fear, wringing his hands. Dan noticed this and wrapped an arm around Adam's shoulder reassuringly while watching Jason's weak breathing with an equal amount of worry.

The sound of creaking stairs caught everyone's attention. The outline of a figure moved up the stairs and moved towards the kitchen.

"Okay, so when exactly did this-" The player stopped in his tracks once he came into view. Everyone gasped and Jerome froze, his eyes becoming as wide as saucers.

The player was their age. He had a pair of blue jeans with a white and gray shirt underneath. A golden dog tag dangled from his neck on a silver chain and he had a black and red checkered hoodie on top. His light brown, messy hair had some bangs that were angled slightly to the side and he had hazel eyes.

His jaw dropped at the sight of the group and he scanned through them all, freezing as he locked eyes with Jerome. "Jerome?!" He turned to the rest of the group. "Dan, Adam, Jason?" Jerome only stared, his eyes slowly watering.

"Mitch?" His voice was so quiet it could be barely heard. The male player stared at the bacca before running forward and embracing him in a bone-crushing hug.

"Oh my Notch, I can't believe it's you!" Mitch cried, burying his face into Jerome's shoulder. Jerome raised up his arms and returned the embrace, whimpering.

"I can't… how…?" Jerome stuttered, not moving from Mitch's hug.

Raven walked forward hesitantly and tapped Mitch's shoulder. "Um, Mitch."

The Benja moved his head towards her and raised an eyebrow. She wordlessly gestured to the dining table with her eyes and Mitch turned to Jason laying there, his chest weakly rising and lowering.

"Oh, crap!" Mitch cried, breaking from Jerome's embrace, running over to the table. "What happened to him?!"

"Hypothermia. I don't know how he caught it, though. He should've have been warm enough." Raven replied, walking over and looking at Jason with concern.

Mitch reached out and felt Jason's skin. He flinched at the cold and reached into his hoodie, pulling out a bottle of golden liquid that was giving off a slight glow.

Everyone watched as the Benja tipped the bottle and slowly poured it down Jason's throat. The astronaut's eyes parted slightly as he swallowed. His bright blue eyes flickered to Mitch and they widened slightly.

"Mitch?"

Mitch smiled as he placed his hand on Jason's shoulder. "Hey, buddy. It's me."

Jason looked up at the ceiling. "Wow, that's…overwhelming…" He laughed weakly before closing his eyes, his head lolling to the side.

"Jason? Jason!" Adam cried, shaking his best friend's shoulder. Mitch reached out and grabbed his hand.

"Adam, it's okay. It's just an after-effect of the potion."

"What exactly did you give you give him?" Jerome asked, his golden eyes darting to Jason then back to his best friend.

"Fire potion mixed with a light sedative. It's basically the opposite of a fire resistance potion. Raven's stepdad, Lapin, created it for things like this."

Jason's breathing slowed and his face slowly began to regain its color. His face relaxed and his chest raised and lowered in a calm, sleeping state.

Raven walked over to one of the couches and picked up one of the pillows. Heading back over, she gingerly lifted Jason's head and slipped it underneath. After lowering his head again, she ducked under the table and lifted up a folded blanket. Folding it open, the brunette player draped the blanket over Jason and stepped back, watching him with concerned.

"How long until he's recovered?" She asked, his eyes moving to meet Mitch's.

"A couple hours. He'll be okay in the morning." Mitch replied. He glanced up at the group and shuffled his feet. "So… when did you guys get here?"

"We've been here for about three days now. Did uh… did you get here the same way we did?" Dan asked.

"Computer started smoking, blacked out, and woke up here? Yeah." Mitch replied, looking at Jerome. "How long?"

"How long for what?" Jerome asked, confused.

"How long did people look for me? How long did my family look?"

"Look for you?" Adam repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Mitch, you never left! Jerome had talked to you like twelve hours before we got transported here."

Mitch froze and looked at Jerome. "You… I was never gone?"

"Why are you talking like this? How long have you even been here, Mitch?" Dan questioned. Mitch swallowed and looked down at the floor before speaking.

"Six months."

"WHAT?!" Everyone cried, causing Raven, who was watching Jason, to jump.

"You've been here for six months?!" Adam cried, his eyes widening behind his dark glasses. "But, that's impossible! We had talked to you on Skype like twelve hours before we got sent here!"

"Well, it could be possible." Dan interjected, causing everyone to stare at him. "I mean, the time is much slower here than what it is in the real world. So, six months is only twelve hours for us, so that means practically no time has passed since we got here."

"So, basically what you're saying is that I've barely been gone all this time and no one probably doesn't even know I'm missing, right?" Mitch asked.

"Correct."

Mitch sighed with relief and brushed his hair back. "Thank Notch…" He glanced at Jason and then turned to the group.

"It's not safe for you guys to be out at this time of night, so if you need somewhere to stay, the living room is up for grabs."

"Mitch, we didn't want to be a bother-" Raven started, but Mitch held up a hand.

"Raven, these are my friends. Like I'm gonna make them stay somewhere else when this is the first time I've seen them in six months." Raven blinked then nodded in understanding. She turned and grabbed a chair, placing it beside the table Jason was currently occupying.

"I'll watch Jason until he wakes up."

"No, I will." Adam argued, standing up and reaching to grab his own chair. Raven sighed and looked at him sympathetically.

"Adam, I can watch him, it's no big deal."

"No, Raven." Adam said in a voice most of them didn't hear from him. "You've done too much for our sake already, and I'll be darned if you add something else to that list." He reached over and gently pulled the chair out of Raven's hands and placed it beside Jason.

"Get some sleep. You deserve it." Adam said in a much gentler tone, like a mother telling her child to go play.

Raven paused then nodded, heading to the living room. Dan and the others started heading to the living room, but the caveman paused, putting a hand on Adam's shoulder.

"You sure you want to do this?" Dan asked. Adam looked at his bearded friend and smiled lightly.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

With that, the sunglasses-wearing player sat down in his chair and began his night shift. Dan headed into the living room, tossing a blanket over to Adam once he reached it.

Adam caught it and looked down at it. He swiveled his head to look at Dan and smiled gratefully. The caveman returned the grin and disappeared from view. The gold-lover wrapped the blanket around his shoulders before getting comfortable in his seat. He looked at Jason and watched as his chest slowly moved up and down in an invisible pattern as he slept.

Adam sighed and got into a comfortable position in his chair. He had a long night ahead of him.

**And BOOM goes the dynamite! Wow, Mitch is here?! OMG, that's so surprising and not at all expected! Hehe, yeah, it really doesn't take a genius to figure it was Mitch. I mean, I mention him the book's description AND the chapter is called "Benja Canada". Yep, totally expected :P Oh, and in case you're worried, yes, Jason's fine. But this isn't the last you'll see of this kind of problem though. It ties in to something else later on with Lapin so you'll see it eventually be addressed in a couple chapters from now. But for now, stay awesome, and I'll see you all later! –Five**


	9. Absolute Emergency

**Chapter 9: Absolute Emergency**

Sunlight poured into the kitchen right into Adam's eyes. The gold-lover groaned and covered his eyes, blinking them open.

His body was wrapped in a blanket in the wooden chair, his left hand still resting on the table. He heard the sound of birds and looked out the window to see some red and blue birds fly by. They stopped outside the window to peck at the flower pot sitting on the porch for a moment before taking off again, chirping as they went.

Adam smiled, brushing his hair back. He absent-mindedly fingered the strap that wrapped the glasses to his skull. After thinking about it for a few moments, he gently pulled the strap far enough to slip his glasses off his face, rubbing his eyes between his fingers.

His eyes slowly blinked and he hissed as his eyes started burning at the sight of the sun in his eyes. He turned away, but got more confused as the pain didn't quite go away as the light faded. He felt his eyes water before deciding that his glasses would be much better and slipped them back on.

Instantly, the world returned to normal, his eyes almost instantaneously ceasing their pain. He raised in eyebrow and tentatively lifted one side up, revealing one hazel brown eye. The dim light hurt his vision and Adam, in a reflex, let go, causing it to snap back into place. Hard.

The gold-lover cried out softly as the elastic band caused the skin it had struck to sting. He rubbed that part of his face, sighing. Some morning this was…

Adam's eyes snapped open at the thought, remembering what Mitch had told them last night. He turned sharply to the table and gasped. Jason's skin color was fully returned and his breathing was normal. Still, his face was contorted in a slight grimace, as if he was having a bad dream.

A large smile appeared on the gold-lover's face as the astronaut stirred. Jason groaned and groggily opened his eyes.

The bright light made him squint instinctively and he sleepily turned his head to look at Adam, who had dashed over and was currently looking over him happily.

"Jason, you're okay!" Adam cried, smiling.

"I…" Jason replied, still tired. He furrowed his brow and looked up at the ceiling. "Did…did I get hit by a train?"

Adam laughed. "No, Jason, you didn't get hit by a train."

"Oh…so it was a truck, then?"

"You didn't get hit at all, Jason." Adam replied, shaking his head. "You almost had hyperthermia and had collapsed in the snow, remember?"

Jason raised an eyebrow and then blinked. "Oh yeah…" His brow furrowed and he looked at Adam. "Did Mitch drug me?"

Adam chuckled. "Yeah, just a little bit. It was to help you relax, but he said it'll wear off pretty quickly."

Jason groaned and started to prop himself up. Adam reached forward and helped him into a sitting position, his legs dangling over the edge of the table. Jason glanced at the living room and frowned.

"How long have they been awake?"

Adam turned around and saw that Mitch, Dan, and Raven were all sitting on the couches, watching them. Dan and Mitch waved happily and Raven smiled warmly at Jason, giving him a small wave. Jason mimicking her gesture and smiled at the three of them.

"Hey guys." The astronaut turned to the Benja and grinned. "Hey Mitch."

The Canadian smiled back. "Hey, buddy. How was your sleep?"

Jason shrugged. "It was about as nice as a drugged sleep can be, I guess." Mitch grinned in response and Dan waved them over. Jason slowly got off the table and he and Adam made their way over to the group that was settled in the living room.

The gold-lover frowned when he noticed that one of his friends was absent. "Hey, where's Jerome?"

Mitch smirked and pointed upwards. Everyone looked up and saw the bacca laying across a wooden beam that was directly overhead them. The furred creature was on his back, on arm slung across his chest and the other hanging over the side.

The guys all made evil looks and one by one, Dan, Mitch, and Jerome all made their way across the room.

Jason sat down next to Raven and the two shared a smile.

"I'm really glad you're okay." The female player said, smiling warmly at Jason. The astronaut returned the smile.

"You, know next to Mitch, you guys are really the other friend's I've ever had."

Jason turned to Raven, surprised. "What, are you serious?"

Raven nodded and sighed. "If you don't count Sheep and Lapin's friends, before you guys showed up Mitch was my only friend that was my age. Everyone else is older than me by at least twenty years."

Jason smirked. "Wow, you really like hanging out with old people." Raven gave him a mock glare and elbowed him.

"Forty-three isn't old, it's not even middle-aged!" The brunette argued. The astronaut only smiled in response and Raven couldn't help but eventually smile back. The two directed their attention to the three guys who were standing below Jerome with a pillow each.

With evil smiles, the three of them all threw their pillows at Jerome. The bacca awoke with a start, falling off the beam and crashing in a belly-flop on the floor, the pillows landing on top of him. He shook his head, glaring at everyone.

"What the heck, guys?!"

Dan, Adam, and Mitch only responded with laughter. Raven giggled and Jason only smiled at the bacca, who was sitting on the floor glowering.

Mitch finally calmed down from laughing and sighed. "It's good to see you guys again."

"It's good to see you too." Jason replied, smiling. "Did the guys fill you in on what's happened?"

"Yeah. Me and Raven were talking earlier and we thought it'd be safest if we all went to her dad's house."

"You mean Lapin's?" Jerome inquired, standing up. Mitch nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah, his place is the safest out of all of the possible hideouts. It's underground in this old abandoned shack out in the middle of nowhere, so no one never even thinks about checking it out."

"Well, that and the fact that it's not that far away from the Hostile Woods." Raven added.

"Sorry, '_Hostile Woods'_?" Dan exclaimed.

"Yeah. Basically, all the mobs that spawn in the world either spawn within soldier camps or in those woods. They never leave the borders, though." Her eyes glossed over. "Well, except that one time…"

Everyone shared looks and Jason reached out to her. "Um, Raven are you okay?"

She shrugged it off and forced a smile. "Yeah, it's just an old memory. I don't want to dwell on it though, so please just leave it be."

"Alright." Adam nodded, leaning so he could look outside. "It's pretty light outside. Do you think we should back?"

"Sure," Raven replied, walking over and picking up her bag. She opened and shuddered at the sudden cold. Remembering something, she grabbed a blanket off the table and walked over to Jason.

"Raven what are you-" The astronaut questioned as she draped the blanket over his shoulders after making him put on a coat.

"No way I'm risking you almost dying again, it's still pretty cold out there."

Jason pouted but didn't respond, looking like a giant furry blob from the knees up. Adam snickered and the astronaut gave him a death glare, the brunette just giving him a gleeful grin in return.

Jason flinched as Raven smacked his hand when he reached to take off the blanket. She glared at him and he lowered it, pouting.

Adam watched happily as Jason was herding through the path by his mother hen. "Having fun there, Jason?"

His best friend glared at him, mouthing 'Shut up'. Raven noticed where he was looking and silently scolded Adam, making the glasses-wearing player to stop snickering and look away sharply. The hill that covered Raven's house just came in view and the group calmly made their way over.

"So, what's Lapin like?" Dan asked, putting his hands in his pockets. Raven shrugged as she pulled Jason's coat off of him, the outside temperature finally warm enough for him to safely be without it.

"Well, he's nice. Smart, likes to focus on multiple things at once and likes to come up with new potions and redstone contraptions. He's the one who taught me how to configure my front entrance. That took a while to build though." She paused. "His introductions are kind of abnormal, though."

"Define abnormal?" Dan asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, he tends to-" Raven began, suddenly stopping as she faced the entrance to her base. Dan, puzzled, looked in the direction she was facing and gaped.

The front door looked completely normal, except for the door. The door that had been _broken_.

"Sheep…" Raven slowly walked over to the front door. Her walk quickly turned into a run and she disappeared down the staircase. Jason and the rest of the group quickly followed after her.

Raven ran down the steps then jumped the last flight and landed in the opening by the underwater cave. The cave was fine, but there were mud foot prints and ash coming from where her home was. She turned and hesitantly made her way towards the home area.

She walked through the archway and gasped, coughing as she inhaled the smoky air. The entire room was thrown apart and burnt. Scorch marks covered the surviving area, but almost every surface was black with ash. The brick fireplace was the only thing that had survived and Raven saw by looking upstairs the upstairs had been burned as well.

Raven turned her head to the hallway and sighed with relief as the stone blocks that covered the passageway behind the wood still remained. The wood on top, however, had been reduced to small scorched planks. She ran over and lifted the wooden beams off, taking out a pick and breaking the stone. She blinked as the smoke left her vision and coughed again. The female player ran up the stairs, finally finding her voice.

"Sheep! William! Are you guys okay?"

No sound came from upstairs. Raven felt a chill down her spine and she forced herself to keep moving. "Sheep, you there?" Once again, no sound came. The brunette quickening her pace as her calls became more frantic.

"Sheep! Are you there? Please, answer!"

She reached the top and was surprised to see that the room was perfectly fine. The stables were fine and not even a block was out of place.

"What?" Raven murmured looking at the entrance, which was sealed as normal. She took a step forward and heard a crunch under her feet. Looking down, she saw a piece of paper on the ground with writing on it, her name quickly etched on it in bold letters. The brunette reached down and picked it up, reading it.

Adam and the others reached the top of the stairs where they saw Raven shudder and collapse on her knees. She shook as if she was crying, clutching the note in her hand tightly. Mitch knelt beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder. He jumped as she suddenly flung her arms around him, crying. She laughed, wiping her eyes and holding up the note.

"He's okay, he's okay…" She murmured, burying her face onto Mitch's shoulder. Mitch read the note and sighed with relief, passing it to Dan before comforting Raven.

Dan held up the note so they could all read it and they all felt their fear wash away.

"_It was an absolute emergency. You know where to find us. –Sheep (And William)_"

Raven smiled then shuddered. "I thought… I thought he… not again…" Mitch hugged her, reassuring her that Sheep was fine, though the rest of the guys could only guess about what she meant. She sighed and wiped her eyes, getting back on her feet. She smiled weakly.

"Well, there goes getting Sheep before we go. Guess we gotta pick some kids up from daycare on the way back." She turned and headed towards the back door with determination.

"Um, Raven, you sure you're okay?" Mitch asked, concerned for his friend. She paused then shrugged.

"Eh, I've been worse, but as long as Sheep's alive, which he is, I'm fine." Raven motioned them to come back, looking warily outside. "C'mon, if we want to get out of here before they come back, we should go now."

"They?" Adam repeated.

"_His_ soldiers. They were the ones that did this." Raven turned to the group and gave them a worried look.

"Someone knows that I'm helping you and they're trying to scare us. Whoever knows who we are, they're definitely anything from friendly."

The group shared a worried look before following after Raven and leaving their first base for the last time.

**_Woohoo, new chapter! I hope you're happy, random Guest! BTW, I would recommend making an account, otherwise I won't be able to reply to you, and I want to be social with you guys :) Also, yes Sky is snowblind. And no, that's not made up, Adam has actually stated that his character is blind, I just choose snowblindess because then he's not COMPLETLY blind. Plus it's a small plot device later on. In case you don't quite know, snowblindess means your eyes are blind when facing most forms of light, so you have to wear very dark glasses that block out the light, including the space on the sides. (That's why Sky's glasses are strapped around his head.)_**

**_So, one more chapter before I can start posting the pre-written chapters I have ready. You're gonna get some scheduled posts, guys! Yay! :D_**

**_Stay awesome! -Five_**


	10. Sheep Daycare

Adam hadn't expected the group to reach the plains so quickly. From what Raven had showed them from the map earlier, they had to cross a meadow before reaching the woods that would lead to Lapin's home. The woods also led in two other directions; the Hostile Woods and one of the larger towns in the world. Raven said it was commonly thought of as a sub-capital while the real capital was the city that surrounded the castle. The castle which 'You-Know-Who' lived.

Adam bit his lip. He had wanted to ask Raven about the world's controlling ruler's name, but with all the events that had transpired he had forgotten to ask. He looked up and opened to speak but stopped as he noticed Raven's appearance.

She was focused on the map in her hands, her eyes flickering across it at the speed of a bull. Her shoulders were hunched up and she had a far off look in her eye. Knowing that was a silent message that said 'Don't interrupt me, I'm busy', Adam averted his focus to the landscape around them.

The plains appeared to go half a mile in every direction, forests surrounding it on all sides. Tall grass, sunflowers, and flowers were scattered around in large clumps. The group was currently walking through a sea of tall grass, only being able to see about halfway up their torsos. Adam narrowed his eyes and looked across the landscape, trying to see the forest's edge through the light of the sun.

A faint sound of animals came from the far left. Raven whipped her head in that direction and waved to them. "I found it!" She turned and broke into a run, following the sound.

"Raven, hold on!" Mitch called, he and Jerome following after her. "Wait for us, for Pete's sake!"

Raven didn't turn around despite her friend's protests and she broke through the clearing. She stopped right outside the field and stared. There was a large cluster of sheep scattered around the meadow. A mother was walking by, a few lambs following her from behind making high pitched baas as they walked.

"COMING THROUGH!" Raven turned just in time to see the group running blindly through the grass. Right towards her…

"Wait, wait! Guys, st-"

**_WHAM! _**

The guys cried out as they all fell on the ground on top of each other. A few sheep nearby them glanced up and made confused glances at each other before continuing to graze.

"Okay, maybe we shouldn't have all run in the same direction at once…" Dan grumbled, lifting his hat out of his face. Jason groaned, lifting Mitch leg off of him and glanced at him.

"Yeah…"

"Wait, where's Raven?" Adam asked, noticing that their friend was nowhere in sight.

"Okay, you all have five seconds to get off me before I take this sword and SHOVE IT IN YOUR EYES!"

The guys all made eye contact and a moment later, they collectively scrambled off of each other. Raven was sprawled out on her back, the wind knocked out of her. She glared at all of them before sitting up, groaning. She gagged and pulled some brown fur out of her mouth, turning to Jerome murderously. The bacca took a step back fearfully, holding up his hands in a surrendering motion.

She got up and brushed off her sleeve. "Okay, from now on, don't run in a freaking line." She turned and gestured to the giant herd. "Alright, _kids_. Welcome to Animal Daycare."

Raven turned back to them. "We're looking for a male sheep. About the size of a baby wearing a red collar. Brown and normally-aligned eyes, has a tendency to make sarcastic comments. Got it?"

"Got it!" The group replied. She nodded and ran off to the herd.

"Let's go find ourselves a talking sheep!"

**_30 minutes later…_**

"Sheep? Sheep…" Mitch called, his voice sore from calling for so long, walking through the herd. Jerome took a few more steps before sighing.

"Buddy, I think we just have the worst eyesight in the world."

"We have to keep looking, Biggums, even if it takes the whole day. Sheep means more to Raven than you'd think."

"Well, I got _that_, but I can't help but feel like it something else. How close are they, like, really?." Jerome replied, sitting down on the grass beside Mitch. The Canadian rolled his eyes at the bacca's move and crossed his arms.

"They're relationship isn't just the friendship of a pet and its owner, Raven was the one who _found_ Sheep when he was thrown out as a 'Failed Experiment'." Mitch explained. Jerome's eyes widened at that.

"She found him?"

"Yeah. The poor guy was practically dead, you could see his ribs and he was as pale as snow. Well, more than he already is, I mean…"

"I didn't know that..."

"Well, Raven only told me, so that's probably why. Anyways, she took him in and the two found Lapin together. He took them both in after that and the three of them are all now a happy, slightly weird family."

"Who is Lapin, exactly, Mitch?" Jerome asked, not noticing a small baby make its way over to him.

Mitch paused, rubbing the back of his head. "Um, it's actually a little hard to explain. So, Lapin's father, Arthur, was neighbors with Raven's parents before the village got burned down. Lapin had never met Raven's parents, since he was in another town and never really visited."

"Why was he away from his dad?"

"He went to school to study brewing and redstone machinery. He didn't know that Raven was his father's neighbor's daughter until she had brought it up."

"That's a little weird if you think about it, though." Jerome commented. "I mean, you're adopted by the son of your neighbor, I mean, that would things a little awkward, wouldn't it?"

"Surprisingly, no." Mitch replied. "You'd think it would, but since the two never knew about each other's existence there wasn't any pre-impressions of each other. So, they were basically strangers when they met. One year later and Raven's last name was legally changed to Lazuli."

"I heard Raven mention something about Lapin being a little, um, 'off'. Is he… alright up here?" Jerome pointed to his head and Mitch chuckled.

"Yeah, he's fine. A little hyper and obsessive, sure, but he's not mentally imbalanced. He just sometimes gives off that vibe. Well, and the fact that he tends to stare intently quite a bit would set a few people off."

"Staring intently?" Jerome questioned. Mitch started to reply but stopped and snorted as he noticed the area Jerome sat in. The bacca looked down and noticed half a dozen lambs crowded around him, looking up at him.

"What, never seen a bacca before?" Jerome asked. One of the sheep moved forward and felt Jerome's hand that was rested on the ground. It baaed and nuzzled it happily. The others followed its lead and made a nest around him.

"Hey, what's the big idea? Get off, I'm not your mom!" Jerome complained, trying to brush the lambs off of him. Mitch watched amused as a few more sheep noticed and started making their way over.

"Mitch, help me! I'm being smothered by tiny, white beings of death!" Jerome cried, waving his arms as more lambs snuggled around him.

Mitch moved forward to help him before he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned and froze, turning pale. "Um, Jerome…"

"What?"

"I think our break's over…"

Jerome followed Mitch's gaze and paled as he saw dozens of sheep, some lambs and some adults, making their way towards the duo. The bacca and Benja shared a look of fear.

"Oh sh-"

"AAAAHHHH!"

Raven and Dan perked up and turned just in time to see Mitch and Jerome frantically running past them. Raven looked in the direction they came from and gasped, seeing practically half the herd chasing after them. Dan noticed that she was standing directly in front of the oncoming highway of death and just had enough time to reach out and pull her out of the way.

The two backed up as the herd ran past them, baaing loudly as the Benja and bacca screamed fearfully up ahead.

"What the Nether did those two do?!" Raven cried out, watching as the duo ran to the nearest tree and climbed up it, barely making a safe distance up before the mob of sheep reached the tree's base.

"I have no idea…" Dan murmured, confused to how the two could have possibly made things _this_ chaotic.

Raven sighed and waved Dan over. "C'mon, let's go get the others and save the Dumbtastic Duo." Dan laughed and followed her lead as they went away from the tree and towards the area Adam and Jason had gone off in.

Mitch and Jerome were grasping the tree's branches, looking down as the sheep crowded around the tree looking up at them.

"I never thought I'd be _afraid_ of the Minecraft sheep." Jerome remarked, sharing a look with Mitch. The Benja nodded in agreement.

"Alright, alright! Move it, folks, these two aren't up for show and tell!"

Mitch and Jerome gasped and looked down, watching as something obscured from view pushed the sheep away, making a small path towards them.

"These two nimrods are _mine, _you hear? Now, move it!" A small, white sheep, wearing a red collar, snapped, moving until he was directly under the tree. The herd made surprised looks and hesitantly started moving away from the tree and dispersing.

"Yeah, that's right, beat it! You too, junior, come on, move it. That's it, go." Sheep ordered, nudging a lamb back towards its mother before turning and looking up at the Benja and bacca. "Now, what in the Nether are you two doing up there?"

Mitch and Jerome blinked before climbing down and standing beside Sheep. "Sheep, where the balls were you?! We searched the entire herd for you!"

Sheep shrugged. "I dunno, I'm just hard to find sometimes." He raised an eyebrow and glared. "What, you joking about my size?"

"No! No, no, no!" Mitch exclaimed, waving his hands, making Jerome stare at his friend confused. The Benja turned and whispered to him. "Note to remember; _Never_ joke about Sheep's height. The dude could bite your finger off if he wanted to."

"SHEEP!"

The three turned and saw Raven running towards them, the others following behind her. Sheep blinked before smiling.

"Oh, hey Raven. What's u-OOF!" He got cut off as Raven scooped him up into her arms and embraced him in a bone-crushing hug.

"Oh my Notch, I was so worried about you!" She exclaimed, smiling happily. Sheep gasped and lifted a leg out from behind her arm, whacking it frantically. Raven looked down and loosened her grip. Sheep's head poked out, gasping for breath. He looked up at her.

"For Notch's sake, Raven, don't do that!" The two stared at each other blankly before breaking into chuckles and embracing each other. Raven patted his head.

"Glad you remembered the rules, buddy."

Raven reached into her satchel and pulled out a leash. She locked it around Sheep's collar and set him on the ground beside her. He glanced down at the leash and looked up at her, raising a brow.

"A leash? Really?" Raven shrugged and gently tugged on it.

"You know that I know that you get a little excited when you're outside. I'm not losing you _again_."

Sheep sighed. "You run out of sight once and you never hear the end of it."

Raven crossed her arms and glared down at the mob. "You're the one who ran into Hostile Woods and nearly killed both you and me."

"That apple tree looked so irresistible!" Sheep exclaimed, throwing up his forelegs. Raven rolled her eyes and tugged on the leash, leading Sheep towards the forest on the far side of the meadow.

"C'mon, brainiac, let's go get William and get to Lapin's. The sun's gonna set in only a few hours."

The sheep reluctantly followed her, gesturing for the guys to follow them. The group made their way through the crowd of sheep and into the opening facing the approaching woods. As they got closer, a gray stallion came into view. Raven broke into a smile and whistled. The stallion perked up and trotted over to the group, neighing.

Raven patted William's head and gave the stallion a warm smile. "Hey, buddy. Nice to see you both are okay." The horse whinnied and motioned towards the woods with his head. Raven nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, we're heading to Lapin's." William turned and started trotting towards the woods, Raven holding onto his reins with one hand and Sheep's leash in the other. Dan caught up and held the map up so she could see it, the brunette thanking him gratefully.

Mitch shoved his hands into his hoodie's pockets and walked alongside Jerome, following behind Jason and Adam. The group approached the loaming spruce forest, the guys suddenly felt a mixture of cautiousness and comfort.

The tall, dark brown trees towered over them almost threateningly, it's lush green leaves contradicting its feeling of darkness completely. A coarse dirt pathway weaved its way in between the trees a little ways ahead of them. The path looked worn with wagon marks and footsteps, some normal like Raven's while some had some abnormal shapes about them. Some were extremely thin while some came in groups of eight.

As Raven led the group onto the path, a feeling of comfort came through the group. The guys jumped as a thin mist, like the kind from rain, appeared seemingly from nowhere and covered the air around them about thirty feet in any direction. The air smelled like pine and fresh rain, the air feeling moist and heavy with water.

"Is it always like this is here?" Adam asked, looking up and noticing the blue sky from the meadow had been consumed by light gray clouds shrouding the light from view.

Raven nodded, gesturing to the woods. "Yeah, these woods are known to have the largest amount of rainfall than anywhere else in the world. Some say that even the Obsidian Cliffs don't even get this much rain."

"Obsidian Cliffs?" Jason repeated, looking at Raven curiously.

"Yeah. The cliffs are right along the border of the volcano by the eastern edge-"

"YOU GUYS HAVE A VOLCANO?!" Jerome cried out. "A FREAKING _VOLCANO_?!"

"Relax, Jerome, it's been inactive for nearly a century." Raven replied, biting back a laugh.

The bacca visibly relaxed and sighed. "Thank God, I was gonna have a freaking heart attack if you said it was still active."

"Well, yeah, the valley's volcano is inactive, for sure, but not the one about a biome over." Sheep replied nonchalantly. "_That_ one is still very active. Lapin said that he expected it to erupt _any day_ now."

"Sheep!" Raven scolded, glaring down at her pet. "Quit giving the poor guy a heart attack!" She looked up and frowned sympathetically at Jerome's horrified expression. "Jerome, he was kidding. The only volcano in this land is inactive and is nearly on the opposite side of the world."

Jerome let out a loud sigh, dragging his furred hands over his face. His hands dropped to his sides and he shot Sheep a look that was nothing short of a death glare. Sheep only grinned evilly and shrugged.

"What? You guys are brand new to this, when else would I get an opportunity to scare you like that?"

Sheep cried out in pain as Raven flicked his head harshly. She glared down at him and crossed her arms, silently ordering him to apologize. He glared back before breaking under her angry gaze and sighing. "I'm sorry, Jerome."

"Say it like you mean it!" Raven barked, her gaze changing from anger to annoyance. Sheep shot her a look before rolling his eyes.

"Fine. I'm. Sorry. Ok? I was just joking around, I didn't mean to scare you that badly." He looked up at her. "There, I was completely honest. Happy?"

"Very." Raven replied, dropping the angry look almost immediately and smiling back at Jerome, winking.

Adam and the others, who had watched the whole scene, silently leaned towards Jason whispered. "Dude, she's _scary_ when she's mad." Jason smiled and watched as Raven gently tugged on Sheep's leash, encouraging him to catch up.

"Yeah, she really is…" The astronaut replied.

Adam's eyebrows rose at Jason's admiring tone in his voice and glanced at his best friend, noticing the gaze he was giving Raven. The gold-lover's eyes flickered between Jason and Raven before his mouth turned into a sly grin. "I know that look..."

"What?" Jason asked, snapping out of his gaze and looking away, his now-red cheeks thankfully hidden by his helmet's orange tint.

"Nothing." Adam quickly replied, looking away and tightening his gloves.

Jason stared before turning back to the road, walking alongside his best friend. It was long before the astronaut's blue eyes slowly moved back to Raven, walking just ahead of them. He smiled shyly and rubbed his arm, glancing back at his taller friend next to him. Adam was walking next to him, looking at the woods they were passing by and not paying attention to him.

Jason glanced back at Raven and his friends before smiling with content. _You know, I think us being transported here isn't such a bad thing after all._ He thought, not knowing far away, in another realm of the world, a tall man was watching the scene intently, observing as six green dots with the group's names above them moved across the wood's path. He smiled warmly and turned away from the bird's eye view map of the group that lay before him.

"Glad you think so, Jason." He spoke before a beam of light came down and enveloped him. Moments later, the light faded and the man had completely disappeared without a trace.

Somewhere across the large map, in the darker section tinted with red, labeled with the words "_NETHER_" a small sound was heard. Around the multiple dark black dots that moved around it, a small, faded green dot blinked tiredly. It flickered for a moment before returning to its previous state, its glow only slightly brighter than before. The words above it brightened a little, its pure white letters being the center of attention in the entire section of the map.

**_"_****_STEVE"_**

**_Wow, what a boatload of info, holy snot! So, a lot has happened in this chapter. Some funny, some drama, and some at the end that has A LOT of importance. If you think that person will be introduced relatively quickly, I can confidently say no, that person will not be back for quite a while. Maybe once or twice, but you'll finally see them at the end of the book. Speaking of, I don't know if you guys are aware, but this story is long. I don't mean like 20 chapters, I mean like 40, 50, maybe 60 chapters long, with like 100,000 words. It's a long-ass story. With that being said, I'm giving you all a big round of applause for sticking with it this far. Granted, it's not insanely far, but if you're here that means you stuck with it for at least this long, which means a lot to me. You guys are amazing and I love you all! Kisses for everybody! *throws Hershey Kisses*_**

**_Oh, and this is the last chapter I've had to _****completely ****_rewrite. You know what that means? It means you guys will get like ten new chapters at a way faster pace than before! Yay for more storyline! Expect one or maybe two chapters a week for the next few weeks. The story is just getting started, people!_**

******_If you like the story, follow or favorite it so you can stay up to date with it and get an email every time I post a new chapter. Also, feel free to leave a review, I love hearing you guy's feedback, and if you see any grammar or spelling errors, feel free to tell me via PM. I know I'm decent at both of those things, but if you see an error that happened to go over my head feel free to tell me. That's all I gotta say, so until the next chapter:_**

**_Stay awesome! -Five_**


	11. Discoveries and New Faces

The group had walked a while longer before a home came into view. A large clearing was off to the side of the pathway. The ground was made up of coarse dirt and gravel, a small stable resting to the side. A pile of logs sat on the opposite end, birch fences lining the three sides around the path. A single lantern was hanging from the front porch, a stone bench placed on it.

"Welcome to my home." Raven spoke, unclipping Sheep's leash and letting him walk to the porch. The group made their way into the yard, moving out and looking around. Raven led William into the stables then made her way towards the front door, Jason following closely behind her.

The house was two stories and fairly large, made of spruce. It had glass windows on the top floor and a slopped roof. A red brick chimney came out of the top and some smoke was coming out of it. The front door was made of dark wood, a formal metal handle and a silver doorbell beside it.

Jason brushed his hand along the railing and looked up at her. "So, this is where you grew up?"

Raven smiled. "Yeah, Lapin originally lived here alone, but once he adopted me, he added a second story so I could have more space growing up. He usually hangs out in the basement more than anything, though. I spent most of my time either up in my room or downstairs with him."

Jason gave her a soft smile. "He really loves you, doesn't he?"

Raven gazed up at the house and let a gentle look come over her. "Yeah, he does, he's the father I never had the privilege of growing up with…" She looked up and softly gestured to the door. "Speaking of, I think it's time you meet him." She reached inside her bag and took out a silver key with a house marking on it. She placed it in the door's lock and opened the door.

Raven and the rest of the group moved inside, Sheep following after. Raven turned around the softly closed the door after them, locking it with a soft click.

The door led right into the living room. It was a dual room, the kitchen on the far side, visible through the hole in the wall divider. A dining table was set next to it, a small chandelier hanging above it. A door led from the dining room to a space that was hidden under the stairs, presumably the basement door. The living room was directly to the left of the door. A dark gray L-couch was placed beside a brick fireplace. A bright blue carpet was laid on the soft birch flooring, a dark oak coffee table sitting on top of the blue rug. On the door's right there was a bookshelf that went all the way to the ceiling. A staircase led up to a small hallway, with three doors along it. The floor they stood on was a creamy birch wood, the kitchen's flooring a white tile pattern. It looked surprisingly very modern and had a more mature look to it than Raven's rustic underground home.

"Lapin's probably downstairs working. Follow me." Raven explained, opening the door underneath the stairs and leading the group down the staircase that led to the basement. The walls were made of birch, four pillars of oak logs coming up and supporting the roof above it on the far sides. The floors were birch and the ceilings were stone with random scorch marks on it. A large rectangular table was in the center, covered in brewing stands and piles of potion materials. In one corner there was a smaller room off to the side that was filled with a large setup of computer screens and a few keyboards. In the other corner there was a pile of redstone repeaters, pistons, and redstone dust in giant containers. A hallway went off to the side, with three doors in it.

The group realigned their focus to the man standing hunched over at the table. His back was to them and he was wearing a blue dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up. A pair of black trousers adorned his legs along with a pair of dress shoes. His hair was a deep shade of black but had a few strands of gray hair scattered throughout.

He was focusing intently at the beaker in front of him. He grabbed an eyedropper and eyed it carefully.

"Almost there, just one more drop and…" He spoke his voice deep but had a tired tone in it, as if he hadn't gotten much sleep. He pressed his index finger on the eyedropper, a single drop falling into the beaker of turquoise liquid.

The beaker hissed and turned a deep shade of purple, the former color swirling away into the vivid new color he had produced.

"Come on, come on, come on…" He urged, watching desperately as the beaker suddenly hissed louder, the purple fading away and the beaker turning a dull shade of gray.

"God-Notch damnit!" The man groaned, collapsing on the table, burying his head in his hands. He angrily brought his fist down and the beaker shook a little from the force. "Why is ender essence so hard to use?!"

"Probably because it wasn't meant to be used in this form." Raven replied, crossing her arms. The man jumped and whipped around, seeing Raven standing in front of the guys. His blue-grey eyes lit up at the sight of her through his glasses and he ran forward, enveloping her in the hug.

"Raven, I didn't hear you come in!" He let go and looked her up and down. "You look great! How have you and Sheep been? Still annoying as always, I presume?"

Raven smiled at him. "They're fine, but there are some new people I want you meet."

"Hey Mr. Lazuli," Mitch spoke, leaning around Raven and waving a hand cheerfully. The man smirked and waggled a finger at him.

"Mitchell, I told you to call me Lapin. We're on first name basis, you don't have to talk me like I'm a teacher."

The Benja rubbed the back of his head embarrassed. "Right, sorry, Lapin." Lapin directed his gaze to Adam and the rest of the group and gasped.

"Holy sweet mother of pearl!" He ran right up to Jerome and looked him up and down. "You are the most magnificent creature I've ever seen! What are you?"

Jerome raised an eyebrow. "Um, I'm Jerome, sir. I'm a bacca."

"A 'bacca'?" Lapin repeated, smiling after Jerome nodded in confirmation. He turned to Mitch and gestured to him. "He doesn't mean _the_ Jerome, does he?" Mitch smiled and nodded, making Lapin turned his head towards the group.

"That must mean that you're Jason." He pointed at Adam. "You're Adam," he lastly gestured to Dan. "And you're Dan." He held out his hand. "Nice to meet you all."

The four shook hands with him, visibly relaxing from the nervousness Lapin's failed experiment had given them. Raven reached out and took Lapin's hand.

"Lapin, there's something I have to ask you." Lapin's cheerful giddiness faded and he turned serious.

"What is it, Raven?" He was giving her his full attention. She sighed and began to explain what had happened since she met Jerome. He listened carefully, not interrupting her and letting her speak. Once she finished, he raised an eyebrow.

"So, you wanted to ask me if you and the others could stay here?" Raven nodded yes. "Raven, of course you can. This is your home as much as mine, and though the guest bedroom may not seem like much now, I'm sure the guys will want to do some remodeling eventually. I'd love for you guys to stay here." He shrugged. "I get lonely here sometimes anyway, so some company would be nice, too."

"Thanks, Dad." Raven replied, smiling happily. Lapin shrugged and turned to the guys.

"Now, if you excuse me, I'd like to see what exactly Jason's problem is with cold weather." He motioned for the astronaut to come forward. Jason hesitantly walked forward and sat down in a chair next to him."

"Raven, why don't you show them the rooms down here while I examine him?" The brunette nodded and led the rest of the group down the hallway. Lapin turned back to Jason and tapped his covered arm.

"Alright, how about we get you into some actual clothes and I can analyze you and your armor." Jason beamed.

"Thank god! I was afraid I was never gonna to take this darn suit off." Lapin chuckled and reached under the table, pulling out a chest.

"I keep a few spare clothes in case I fall asleep down here, but I think these will fit you." He handed Jason a folded up blue shirt and a pair of black pants. Jason nodded and went off into the monitor room to change.

* * *

"Okay, so this is the simulation room." Raven explained, opening the door so the four of them could look inside. It was a large, pure white room in a grid pattern. A small panel was attached to the wall outside and a cable snaked along the wall and up to a single black orb poking out of the ceiling.

"How does it work?" Adam asked. Raven stepped outside and typed something in. A beep came from the panel and she stepped inside the room, closing it shut behind her. The orb at the top turned blue and the room flashed, the scenery of a forest appearing around them. Trees appeared on either side of them, making Dan jump.

"Whoa," He commented, feeling the tree and was surprised to see the tree was completely solid. "So, this is all a simulation?"

"Yep, everything in here is artificial. Not one pixel is real." Raven explained, opening the door. The room instantly faded away and the room was once again an empty, white, gridded space. "This is where Lapin would teach me about the different parts of the world. He'd bring up the volcano and mountains and teach me about the geography of each part."

"Were you home-schooled?" Adam asked.

Raven shook her head. "No, I just decided to learn from home once I graduated. After that, Lapin became my college professor and taught me almost everything he knows."

"Wait, so if you went to high school, why did you move so far away?" Jason questioned, gesturing around the room.

"Personal choice." Raven answered. "I wanted to live off on my own, but it's not that bad. Lapin and I used to live only one biome apart, so we could visit each other whenever."

The guys nodded in understanding and Raven led them out of the simulation room and into the room directly across the hallway. It was a large room with birch walls and a spruce floor. There were six beds built into the wall on the left and right wall and a bookcase on the far one. A wooden table was in the center with a few chests under it serving as dressers.

"This is where you guys are going to be staying." Raven spoke, letting the group move in past her. "I know it's not the very best, but Lapin has given the 'Ok' if you want to remodel it later. Just ask and he can hook you up with the materials."

"Sounds good." Adam replied, climbing up the ladder and taking the very top bunk on the left. He felt it and leaned over and looked down. "These things are super cool! It's like a big sleepover."

"I better not wake up in the middle of night with my hand in warm water." Dan warned, glaring playfully. Raven snickered and turned as someone knocked on the door behind them. She turned and saw Lapin waving at them.

"Hey, can you guys meet me in the training room? There's something I wanted to show you." Before Raven could reply, Lapin disappeared down the hall.

"I wonder what he wants," Raven wondered. Adam stepped down and shrugged.

"One way to find out." The five of them went out and followed Raven's lead as the brunette guided them to the giant birch door at the end of the hallway. They all stepped inside and looked around, amazed at the sheer size of the room.

The walls were made up of a pattern of birch logs and planks. Lights from the birch wood ceiling and reflected off the matching birch floor. Oak beams traveled along the angled ceiling, holding it up. A small elevated area was in the very center with a thick blue carpet laid on top and had fences placed around it to close off the area. Some practice dummies were set beside one wall and weapons and armor was hung on the wall next to it. A smaller room was connected to it that had a practice mat with some targets along the wall.

"Welcome to the training room." Raven stated, happily gesturing to the room.

Dan gave a long whistle and Jerome got an excited look on his face.

"Wow, now _this _is a training room." Dan breathed.

"I know, right?" Mitch replied, gesturing to the mat. "You know many times Raven has kicked my butt on this mat?" Raven smirked at him and ruffled his hair.

"I told you not to do that!" He exclaimed, looking at her annoyed. Raven only grinned and turned her head towards Lapin.

Lapin and Jason were standing by the fenced off mat. Jason was back in his suit and had his helmet tucked under his arm.

"Thanks for coming so quickly." Lapin exclaimed, motioning them to come closer. "There's something I wanted to tell you. Well, and show you, hopefully, if this goes well."

"Is it a good something or a bad something?" Mitch asked, raising an eyebrow.

Lapin grinned. "Definitely a good something. I assume you all are familiar with the prophecy?"

"Prophecy?" The group asked, though Raven watched silently.

Lapin's eyes widened. "You mean you don't know?" He sighed. "I guess I'll have to explain then."

"So, there is a prophecy that Steve would return back to the Overworld when five warriors came to the land. These warriors were not native to this land and came from a different world."

"Wait, a different world?!" Adam exclaimed, his eyes widening. "You mean like-"

Lapin held up a hand, interrupting him. "Let me finish. Each of these warriors was described in quite a bit of detail. For example, one would be a man from the prehistoric era who has adapted to the current times."

"Wait, that's what my character's backstory is!" Dan exclaimed. "My character is a caveman in the modern day. 'The first modern caveman'."

"That answers my assumption." Lapin answered. He turned to Jason. "The prophecy said that one of the warriors would be a man who could travel the stars and could go higher than any cloud and had the weapons of a machine."

"What do you mean?" Jerome asked.

Lapin reached over and took Jason's helmet from his hands. "Jason, I'd like you to put your helmet on."

"Okay…" Jason replied, taking his helmet and placing it over his head, locking it in place.

"Now, I want you to focus on turning your suit on."

"Turning it on?"

"Yes, now focus." Jason screwed his eyes shut, trying to empty his mind and only focusing on his astronaut suit. After a few minutes Jason opened his eyes, turning to Lapin.

"Nothing's hap-"

A hum suddenly erupted from Jason's suit. His helmet's glass flickered and his face could be seen inside more clearly. A growing sound of an engine starting came from his jetpack and suddenly a stream of hot air erupted from the bottom from it. Jason's feet slowly lifted off the ground and he started floating up into the air.

"Whoa! What the heck is going on!?" Jason cried out, waving his hands as his body rotated in midair like he was in zero-gravity. His voice sounded muffled and had a synth tone to it, like he was speaking through a radio.

Lapin smiled. "That went perfectly. Jason, you're fine, this is supposed to happen."

"What, you mean I had a working jetpack this entire time and I didn't know it?!" Jason asked, trying to find his balance in midair. The jetpack suddenly jolted and it abruptly turned off, causing the astronaut to crash to the ground. He groaned and stood up, rubbing his arm. "Guess I don't have the hang of it yet."

Lapin patted his shoulder. "You'll get there. I want to try something else, though." He reached out and nudged his right arm. "Try and focus on creating a weapon."

"Weapon? Like an arm gun?" Jason inquired. Lapin nodded and Jason closed his eyes. His arm whirred into action and his hand warmed up. Jason looked at it in surprise as his palm, covered by the metal and leather glove, started glowing a bright neon blue. "Whoa, this is just like Iron Man!"

He turned to Lapin and smiled. "How did you know that was going to happen?" Lapin shrugged.

"I didn't. I was just going on a hunch from the prophecy." He watched Jason turn his hand over to look at it and reached out. "I wouldn't do that, Jason. It might go-"

He was cut off as the gun went off and a bright ball of light came out of Jason's palm. Everyone jumped as it flew past them and into the smaller training room. It crashed into the stone wall and a small explosion went off. A decent amount of smoke erupted and once it settled, a large hole was in the stone wall, the sides red hot with heat and sizzling.

"…off."

Lapin turned to Jason and the astronaut smiled sheepishly. "Um, hehe, sorry. I seriously didn't mean to do that." Lapin sighed and covered his eyes.

"Just, don't do that again, okay? At least not in here?" Jason nodded quickly, his palm fading out and returning to normal.

Lapin eyed him for a second before turning to Adam. "Adam, I'd like you to take this sword." He handed Adam an iron sword. The gold-lover turned it over in his hands and looked at Lapin.

"Is, um, something supposed to be happening?"

Lapin raised an eyebrow. "Hm, I had a hunch that some sort of reaction would take place. Does your Minecraft character have any significant traits?"

"Well, he has this obsession with gold. I called it 'butter' as a reoccurring joke."Lapin turned to the weapons on the wall and lifted off a golden sword. He swapped it out with Adam's and stepped back.

Adam gripped it tighter, feeling suddenly more at ease with it in his hand. Lapin raised up the iron sword and swung it at Adam. The brunette yelled in surprise and held up the sword, blocking it. A sound of metal scraping pierced the air and the scientist and gold-lover gazed in shock as the iron sword was bent in half, curling around the golden blade. The gold sword itself was untouched, not a scratch on it.

Lapin pulled away, staring at the bent sword. "Well, that answers that hypothesis."

"What hypothesis?" Adam exclaimed.

Lapin put the broken sword in his inventory and smiled goodheartedly. "That golden items you weld will become as strong as any diamonds would, and in some cases, better."

Adam looked at the sword in surprise and lightly turned it in the air, examining it. "I thought that wasn't possible ingame."

Lapin shrugged. "Maybe, but I think the rules may bend for those who aren't from the game either."

"Cool…"

"Wait, does that mean that the three of us have something abnormal, too?" Jerome asked, gesturing to Mitch, Dan and himself.

Lapin grabbed a bow and tossed it to Mitch. "We can find out." He gestured to the three targets on the far side of the room and stepped aside for Mitch. "Mitch, try to hit the bullseye on each of these. Let' see if your archery skills have miraculously improved by a lot."

The Benja nodded in understanding and readied his bow, holding it up to his face. He released an arrow, watching as it flew across the room and landed in the center of the first target. He stepped forward and aimed at the second one, eyeing it carefully in silence. He released it again and the same thing happened, the arrow piercing the bullseye of the second target.

"My Notch…" Raven breathed, watching Mitch with the rest as he approached the third and final target. This one was different, for it had an arrow already in the center of the target. Everyone watched with baited breath as Mitch exhaled.

His brown eyes were narrowed in concentration, only focusing on the target in front of him. He paused for a few moments before letting go of the arrow, feeling the wind brush against his cheek from how close it had been to his face. Everything seemed to go in slow motion as it flew across the room, heading straight for the arrow in the center. The sound of wood cracking was heard and the group stared as the arrow pierced right through and arrow, splitting it in half as it went, landing right in the center, halfway through the target and coming out on the other side.

"Whoa…" Jerome gasped as Mitch lowered his arrow, looking at his friends in a pensive expression. "That…was…awesome!" He turned to Lapin with an energetic face that rivaled a child's. "Do I have some cool superpowers, too?!"

Lapin laughed and gently pushed Jerome's hand away. "Well, I figured you might have some sort of significant strength, seeing as you are obviously half animal." He pointed at the rafters above.

"Mitch, could you shoot an arrow up there?" Mitch nodded and shot an arrow up at the rafters, wedging itself into a support beam about two dozen feet up. Lapin turned and Jerome and put his hands behind his back.

"Retrieve the arrow, Jerome." The bacca blinked and raised an eyebrow.

"Um, what?"

"Retrieve the arrow on your own, without help." Lapin replied, stepping aside so Jerome could approach the support beam.

The bacca looked up at the arrow. He looked down at his hands and studied them, looking up at the wooden beam. After a few moments, he placed his hand on the beam, pulling himself up a few feet. He attempted to use his foot as a brace, but he was unprepared for the smooth wooden surface and slipped as soon as he applied weight to his leg. Jerome cried out, jerking as he stopped a few inches above the ground. He looked up and saw his hand was gripping the beam tightly. He narrowed his eyes, pulling it off, noticing that his hand had small claws poking out from the fur.

Jerome grinned and jumped up, using both of his hands to grip the beam. He used his legs as if he was rock climbing and moved upwards with ease. His hands were leaving small holes where the claws had pierced the wood. After about half a minute of climbing, he reached the top. He reached out and swung himself up, landing on all fours on the beam that went straight across. He plucked the arrow out from beneath him and held it out for Lapin to see.

"This good?"

Everyone was staring at him in silence. Dan and Adam were gaping and Mitch had dropped his bow. Lapin grinned crazily.

"Haha! Jerome, that was perfect! You have expert climbing skills!"

"I don't think perfect is the right word... Weird, or insane, most likely." Jerome replied, putting his arrow in between his teeth and climbing back down. He stopped a few feet from the bottom and jumped down, landing beside them.

"That. Was. Amazing." Raven commented, looking at Jerome like he had grown two heads and a third eyeball. "How could you call that weird?"

Jerome shrugged sheepishly. "It just didn't seem that amazing, just more abnormal."

"It is a big deal!" Mitch interrupted. "Biggums, you turned into a six foot tall wookie that wears a suit and you think _that's_ weird?!" Jerome looked down embarrassed, shuffling his feet.

"Well, it seems that you are the warriors the prophecy had foretold. In fact, you're exactly like how they described you." Lapin said, breaking the silence.

"Wait, doesn't Dan have something?" Adam asked, gesturing to his caveman friend. Dan looked at Lapin questioningly and noted the scientists frown as he shook his head.

"I couldn't find any evidence of Dan having any sort of physical attributes, like the ones you all have." Lapin gestured the caveman's forehead. "However, it did say he had many advantages mentally."

"Mentally? What does that imply?" Dan asked. "Like, moving things with my mind?"

"Telekinesis? Oh, goodness, no." Lapin replied, chuckling. "The advantages I'm referring to is the capability learn, adapt, and be extremely advanced on the logical and thinking side of things."

"So I'm pretty much the tech guru of every band of heroes?"

Lapin paused, before shrugging. "You could call it that, yes. If you'd like, I'd like to offer to teach you the knowledge I have of map-reading and computers, along with redstone mechanics. Raven I'm sure wants to be the one to teach you all how to fight, and you won't be excluded from that."

Dan smiled. "Yeah, I'd actually like that a lot. I've been really interested in the geography and history of this place, actually."

"Good, we can start as soon as possible." Lapin replied, turning to Jason. "Now, um, I think it's time I brought up the issue of Jason's suit. It appears the near-death experience was actually from his suit, not his body."

"Wait, so his suit doesn't have a way to generate heat?" Raven asked, worriedly.

"No. Well, yes, but no." Lapin stammered, rubbing the back of his head. "Jason's suit does have a sort of heat generator, but it's dead. It doesn't have the required energy it needs to be powered."

"What does it run on?" Dan asked.

"Glowstone." Lapin replied, frowning.

Jerome raised an eyebrow. "I'm guessing by that tone of voice glowstone isn't that easy to come by...?"

"I'm afraid even someone like me, who has an addiction of brewing and messing with redstone, finds it hard to acquire even the smallest bit of glowstone." Lapin replied, looking at the bacca with a regretful expression.

"Wait, Wilson sells glowstone, doesn't he?" Raven exclaimed, Lapin looking at her.

The scientist nodded. "Yes, he does. That's what I wanted to talk about, actually."

"Sorry for asking, but who's Wilson?" Dan asked.

"Friend of mine from the college years. He has a bar and potion shop down in the town of New Blockington a little ways down the road."

Jerome and Adam snorted. "Blockington?!" They both went into a fit of giggles while Lapin looked at them with an unamused expression.

Adam looked up and noticed Lapin's annoyed look. "Sorry, continue, Lapin." He said, both Jerome and him trying to hold back snickers.

Lapin stared at them for another moment before continuing. "Anyway, Wilson has glowstone for sale in exchange for gold, the currency here." He pulled out a piece of paper and wrote down a number on it. "It's about a day and a half's worth of travel, so I won't be gone for long."

"Wait, Lapin. I can go." Raven interrupted, holding up a hand.

Lapin looked unsure. "Raven, I don't know…"

Raven rolled her eyes. "Dad, I've been there before, I know how to take care of myself. You know that."

"I know you do, it's just that with someone out there looking for your friends, which includes yourself, I don't want you going off alone. Especially now that I know that your home was destroyed."

Raven held up her hands in protest while Lapin crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow as if daring her to argue. She glared before sighing in defeat, crossing her arms.

"Fine…"

The scientist softened his expression a little before turning back to the guys.

"Alright, then. Well, it's late, and we have been up for a while, so I think it's time you five went and got some shuteye. Especially with all the walking you've done in the past few days."

Jerome laughed. "You kidding? If I've gone this long, I can definitely go on for a few more hours! I'm full of energy!" He smiled for a few seconds before collapsing on the floor in front of Mitch. He reached up and used Mitch's legs to pull his head upwards.

"Mitch, please help…"

The Benja groaned before grabbing his friend's arm and pulling him up to his feet, letting Jerome lean on him as they stumbled out of the training room and towards their room.

"Goodnight, Mitchell!" Lapin called. Mitch held up a hand and waved behind him as he dragged Jerome out of the room.

Dan chuckled and turned to the Lazuli's. "I guess we better hit the hay too." He smiled at Raven and headed out after the Benja and bacca. "Night Raven, goodnight Lapin." Raven turned and smiled after her caveman friend, waving. Adam followed after, Jason leaving with him. The two waved and disappeared, leaving the two of them in silence.

Lapin turned to Raven and frowned as she huffed and looked away from him. "You know I care about you, don't you?" Raven softened her expression and let a small smile grace her features.

"Yeah, I know…"

Lapin smiled and leaned forward, kissing her forehead as the two headed upstairs to their rooms.

* * *

Sheep fluttered his dewy brown eyes open at the sound of something shuffling across the floor. He turned his head and saw a dark figure open the door to his and Raven's room, shutting it softly behind him. He drowsily blinked before slumping his head back onto his pillow.

There were a few moments before he stiffened. Sheep's head shot up and he swiveled his head towards Raven's bed. The bed was cleanly made and the dark blue sheets were smoothed out as if there had never been a person lying there in the first place.

Lapin's bedroom door opened gently, barely making a sound as it opened. The figure stepped into the light of the window, their unmistakable blue hoodie reflecting off the moon's beams. Raven moved over to her father's desk, gazing over it with purpose, catching sight of the small satchel of gold on the side near a piece of paper with the amount of glowstone required next to it.

Raven reached out, picking up the note and reading it over, slipping it into her bag. She glanced over at her father's bed and reached out for the bag of gold nervously.

Lapin suddenly stirred in his sleep. The brunette silently gasped and ducked down, trying to conceal herself from the moon's light. Lapin sleepily raised his head, turning over, still asleep. He absentmindedly rubbed his hand over the faded scar tissue on his right forearm as he moved, grimacing slightly before going back into his usual state of calm.

Raven exhaled quietly, her body bending at a crazy angle at the foot of Lapin's bed. She looked at him to make sure he was asleep before picking the bag of gold off the table again. The brunette crawled towards the door and silently slipped through it, closing if softly behind her.

Raven let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding and relaxed, letting her nerves calm. She stood up and walked across the railing that lined the second floor, passing her room and the bathroom door. The female player moved down the stairs, moving in a specific pattern to avoid the creaking parts of the stairs that would give her away. She made it to the living room and walked across it, grabbing her traveling boots and pulling them on. Raven adjusted her hoodie and sighed, opening the front door, looking out and eyeing William across the way.

"Raven?"

The brunette, gasped and jumped, letting go of the doorknob. It started to close but she grabbed it, holding it just before it closed all the way. Raven turned and saw Sheep standing at the bottom of the stairs, looking at her sleepily.

"What are you doing? I thought Lapin said that he didn't want you to go?"

"Sheep, go back to bed." Raven whispered harshly, looking up at Lapin's door fearful for her father to wake up.

"Then you're coming upstairs with me." Sheep whispered back, but replying with the same amount of harshness.

Raven sighed. "Sheep, I…" She dropped her hand to her side and paused to find the right words. "This is the first time I've had to a chance to do something by myself. Ever since Mitch got here, I haven't really been able to do something on my own. I just… I want to be able to feel that again. I want some time to myself."

Sheep opened his mouth to speak but Raven cut him off. "I'll talk to Wilson and see if I can get a few golden carrots and some apples for you, in addition."

The small mob paused, wanting to say no, but after noticing the puppy dog look Raven was giving him, he groaned quietly. "I'm going to regret this so badly later…fine, I won't tell."

Raven grinned happily, running over and hugging Sheep tightly. "Thank you!" She whisper-yelled, squeezing her animal roommate excitedly. Sheep pushed her away and rolled his eyes. Raven smiled and walked over to the door.

"Raven?"

The brunette turned as she was about to close the door behind her and saw Sheep about halfway up the stairs, looking at her with genuine care. "Be safe."

She smiled and looked back at him. "I will." Raven closed the door behind her, leaving Sheep in the dark, quite literally. The small mob sighed and walked the rest of the way up the stairs, looking at Lapin's room before moving back into his room, hopping through the built-in pet door at the bottom.

"Lapin's gonna give me Nether when he finds out about this…"

_**Heyyyy! So, um, funny story. I uh, kinda combined the next three chapters into one giant chapter, so that's why you guys got this one in a span of 1 ½ weeks. So, now there's a lot less chapters then there were before, but I'm not really that mad. Less to keep track of, I guess. I think this is the longest chapter in here to date, actually, though I think some of the later ones may get longer, especially one that will be during the second act. It's uh… detailed, to say the least. (If you're one of my real life friends, you probably know which one I'm referring too). Any who, hope you enjoyed, leave some feedback if you want to, I appreciate all the support you guys give this book.**_

_**Also, shameless plug, I started a new book! Yay! It's a parody of the Wizard of Oz starring Raven, Adam, Jason, and MunchingBrotato. Oh, and Alex, a character you most likely don't know about yet. She's a barrel of laughs and is Ty's (Deadlox) sidekick. Well, she would say that Ty is HER sidekick, but whatever, I'm her creator, I can do what I want! **_

_**Stay awesome! -Five**_


	12. Good Cop, Bad Cop

"What the…?!"

Mitch's eyes opened at the sound of something hitting the floor. He sat up and looked down. Jerome was sprawled on the floor below him, his face contorted in pain.

"Ow…"

Mitch raised an eyebrow at his bacca friend. "Weren't you sleeping on the top bunk?" The bacca glanced up at Mitch and his eyes flickered to the side.

"Yes…"

Mitch smirked. "Did you fall from the top bunk?"

"…yes."

Mitch stifled a laugh and the bacca shot him an annoyed look. "It's not funny."

Mitch shrugged and got out of bed and reached out a hand to pull Jerome up to his feet. "Well, it's just a little bit funny."

"What do you think the plan is today?" Jerome asked, grabbing his black jacket from his bunk and putting it on over his white dress shirt.

"I don't know." Mitch replied, pulling his red hoodie over his head. "I guess since Lapin's gonna be gone for a few days it'll just be us six for a while. Well, seven if you count Sheep. I think it's just gonna be training and maybe some mining."

"Sounds cool." The bacca said.

A knock on the door interrupted the two's thoughts. The Benja and bacca turned around and noticed Lapin standing there, looking at them worriedly.

"Have you guys seen Raven?" Lapin asked urgently.

Mitch and Jerome exchanged glances and looked at Lapin. "No, we haven't seen her since last night. Why? Is she okay?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out." Lapin replied.

"What do you mean?" Mitch asked, confused.

"She's gone."

* * *

"She's what?!" Jerome gasped. Everyone was in the kitchen standing around the dining table.

"She's gone." Lapin repeated, his voice sounding tired, laced with nervousness. "I woke up this morning and she wasn't in her room. I looked everywhere and found nothing."

"Do you have any idea when or where she went?" Dan asked. Lapin began to reply, but got cut off by Sheep.

"How are we supposed to know? It's not like she would get up in the middle of the night and tell us that she was leaving." Sheep commented.

Everyone paused and turned towards Sheep and stared at him. Sheep glanced at them and took a step back. "What?!" He replied incredulously.

"Sheep…" Lapin said slowly, taking a step towards the small mob. "Do you know where Raven went?"

Sheep shook his head. "No! Of course I wouldn't know where she went! How am I supposed to know why that she took your stuff for Wilson and left in the middle of the night?"

Everyone was silent and Sheep's eyes widened at what he had just said.

"Sheep, I never said she took anything." Lapin said, a sudden sternness present in his voice.

Sheep took a step back as Mitch and Jerome started approaching him. His eyes were shrunken to the size of pinpricks and his stared back in fear. "I-I…"

With a sudden burst of speed Sheep turned and ran off at the speed of a bullet.

"Sheep!" Mitch called. The Benja gasped as a brown shape zipped off from beside him and saw his furry friend run after Sheep. "Jerome, what are you…"

Sheep ran with all the speed his could muster, running down the stairs. He ducked and ran under the table, crouching low and holding his breath as Jerome's furred feet appeared in front of him. He gasped as Jerome's head appeared in front of him, his golden eyes piercing his large brown ones. Sheep turned and ran out from under the table, looking back and seeing Jerome ran around the table and towards him.

Sheep looked forward just in time to see the wall closely approaching him. He quickly stopped running, but stumbled from the sudden halt of movement. The mob had only enough time to close his eyes before he made impact with the hard wooden wall, instantly getting knocked out cold.

* * *

Sheep groaned, his eyes opening drowsily. He reached up and rubbed his head, sore from the hit he had taken from the wall. The mob looked up and took notice of his odd surroundings.

A mirror was on one wall and an iron door was on the wall in front of him. A wooden table with a chain attached to it was in the center with Sheep sitting in front of it. The mob followed the chain and his eyes widened as he saw it was connected to a cuff that was looped to the ring on his red collar.

"Have a nice sleep, Sheep?"

The mob gasped and looked up to see Mitch and Jerome emerge from the shadows and approached the table. Jerome crossed his arms and simply stared at him while Mitch just put his hands in his pockets and calmly approached the table. The sheep's could only stare as Mitch stood beside him and sat on the edge of the table and merely stared at him with a calm expression.

"You know we're not mad at you, Sheep." The Benja said, noticing the mob's scared expression. Sheep looked at him in surprise.

"Really? Because I couldn't tell from the handcuff attached to my neck and the fact that I'm in an interrogation room."

"You know very well why you're here, Sheep. We're just doing this because you left us no other option." Mitch replied firmly. "Now, what did Raven say to you last night?"

Sheep shook his head and crossed his forelegs. "Can't say, Canada, why don't you wait two days and ask her yourself when she gets back?"

The corners of Mitch's mouth pinched into a thin line. "Don't act like this is some sort of game, Sheep."

"Funny thing to say from a guy who's living in one right now."

Mitch pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced at Jerome. "Fine. You want to play the hard way, we'll play it the hard way."

Jerome narrowed his eyes and lifted a small pair of shears from behind his back. Sheep blinked at the shears for a second before his eyes widened in realization. He looked at Mitch and narrowed his brown eyes at him.

"You wouldn't dare."

Mitch looked back at him with no smile on his. "Oh, I dare. Unless you want Raven coming home to a naked, hooved, horse, I suggest you start talking." Sheep glanced at the shears for a moment, contemplating, before turning to Mitch and looked at him defiantly.

"No."

Sheep yelped as Jerome suddenly appeared right next to him. He glared down at Sheep and the mob stared up at him in shock.

"WHERE ARE THEY?!" Jerome demanded his voice sounding like he was gurgling marbles.

"W-What?" Sheep asked confused.

"WHERE IS SHE?" Jerome asked again, his voice still sounding raspy and deep. "WHERE'S RACH-RAVEN?!"

"Jerome." Mitch hissed, grabbing his friend by the ear and yanking him away from the confused-and-slightly-terrified sheep.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" Jerome cried as the Benja pulled him away and into a dark corner of the room. Sheep could only stare and listen as the two faced away from him in the shadows and whisper to each other.

"Jerome, what in the world do you think you're doing?" Mitch hissed. The bacca shrugged and crossed his arms.

"I'm being Batman, Mitch! What does it look like?"

Mitch sighed and brought a hand to his face. "Sheep doesn't know who Batman is, Jerome!"

Jerome thrust his arms out. "But you do! C'mon, I've wanted to do that for the entire interrogation!" There was the sound of a smack and Sheep heard Jerome yelp in pain. "Ow! What was that for?"

"You're being ridiculous! I'm trying to interrogate someone here, and you're just messing it all up by acting stupid!"

Jerome gasped, turning to glare at Mitch.

"_I'm_ being ridiculous?! Says the one who's acting like one of those TV cops from those bad cop shows!"

Mitch glared back. "You're starting to get on my nerves…"

"Good!" The bacca snapped, crossing his arms. "You deserve to be rattled! I made a beautiful reference to a Christopher Nolan masterpiece, and you smack me for it!"

"I didn't say it was a stupid reference!"

"Neither did I." Jerome replied, glaring. Mitch paused and exhaled angrily.

"Whatever, let's just get back to this-"

"NO!" Jerome interrupted, catching the Benja off guard. "We're not ending this until you apologize for hitting me and not fully appreciating that reference!"

"Why? This isn't worth the time!" Mitch replied, clenching his fists.

"This isn't worth the time?!" The bacca repeated, throwing his arms out. "It means something to me, that should be enough for you!"

"We have more important matters at hand!" Mitch snapped back, gesturing to the room.

"This is important to me, right now, Mitch! Just apologize and we can move on!" Jerome replied.

"I don't have to apologize! You were the one being stupid!"

"Oh, I was being stupid, was I? You're one to talk!"

"Um, guys?" Sheep said, watching from his chair as a major argument broke out.

"Sometimes you're too silly for your own good!"

"Oh yeah? Well sometimes _you're_ too unoriginal for your own good!"

"Guys…" Sheep repeated, sitting up straighter as Jerome and Mitch got closer, the anger from them practically leaking into the room.

"You're references can be so random, they're not even funny! It's like you don't think twice sometimes!"

"Same to you, with you trying to be some cop show wannabe!"

"FOR NOTCH'S SAKE, **SHUT UP**!" Sheep yelled, standing up. Jerome and Mitch jumped, stopping and staring at Sheep.

"I get that you both are upset, but for God's sake, focus on the most important thing here! Mitch, Jerome made a reference and wanted you to apologize for hitting him, that's not too much to ask for. Jerome, Mitch is trying the best he can to get an answer out of me, and if he has to be unoriginal in his tactics that shouldn't be a problem for you! You guys are best friends, and you're letting this single thing create a giant argument that could potentially tear your friendship apart?! Get a grip and make peace, god! Now, can both you sit down and not try and be at other's throats for the next _two minutes_?!"

The room was silent. Sheep glared at them while Jerome and Mitch stared at him gaping. They turned to each other and looked away shamefully, muttering apologies under their breath and looking away from each other.

Sheep sighed and sat down. "Now, if you two would let me, I can tell you what she said, but only if you ask me the right way."

Mitch frowned. "Ask you the right way?"

Jerome blinked and made an 'O' shape with his mouth. "Please?"

Sheep smiled and sat back. "Thank you, Jerome. Now I'll tell you. Raven simply told me that she had wanted some time to herself, so she took the gold Lapin was going to take to Wilson's in New Blockington and went off with William last night. She said that since you showed up, Mitch, she hadn't had time to herself and she thought that this was a nice escape for her. She knew that she was taking a risk, but she still wanted to go. That's all."

"Oh…" Mitch spoke, feeling guilty. "I didn't know that she felt that way…"

"Hey, I didn't know either, and she's my freaking roommate." Sheep replied, holding up a hooved arm. "If I didn't know that, you wouldn't either. It's just something she kept from us, I guess."

"Well, at least we know where she is, now, and what her motive was." Jerome commented, shrugging.

"Yeah, I guess."

A loud noise surprised the three of them. The sound of a door slamming open was heard and the room quickly disappeared, leaving the plain white grid from before. Dan, Jason, and Adam all appeared a few feet away from them, previously hidden behind the room's walls. The door to the simulation room was wide open, swinging a little from the force that had opened it.

"Was that Lapin?" Jerome asked, looking at the three of them.

Dan nodded, watching the door in shock. "Yeah, he had just gone silent and ran off to the computer room. He said something about Raven being grounded and that I should meet him by the monitors in a few minutes."

"Alright." Mitch replied, turning to Jerome. "You wanna go practice in the training room for a bit?"

Jerome shrugged. "Sure." The two of them left the room and the four looked at each other.

"I'm a…going to go upstairs and um…sleep. So…bye." Sheep said, slowly turning before quickly running off. Dan turned to Adam and Jason questioningly. The two of them shrugged.

"We'll just hang out in the lab while you're with Lapin, it's no big deal." Adam replied to the caveman's silent question. Dan nodded and walked towards the door.

"I hope Raven comes back safely." The caveman said before disappearing from view.

"Yeah, me too." Jason replied, exchanging a worried glance with Adam before the two followed after Dan and left the simulation room, closing the door behind them.

**_Yay! Another chapter, that's way shorter than the last one, sorry about that. So, turns out I'm still a few chapters ahead, but I took a step back and realized something: I started my book at the beginning of August in 2013. This book is almost two years old, and I'm not even at the 1/3 mark yet. I'm almost there, but I'm still a couple chapters away. Hopefully I can get this book done before I hit the three year mark, but I'm not going to make any promises. I started this in my first year of high school, rewrote it in my sophomore year, now I'll probably finish it in my senior year. It's amazing how quickly time can go by for things like this. _**

**_But, nonetheless, it will be one of my greatest accomplishments. This will be one of my proudest works, and hopefully I'll finally buck up the courage and let my family read it one day. I've come to love the characters and stories I've made from this and I will always hold that close to my heart. I love this book and I'm glad I can share this with you guys._**

**_Stay awesome -Five _**


	13. Trading

Rain gently poured down through the gaps between the branches of the forest. The trees swayed in the breeze like dancers performing a ballet. The air was filled with chilled mist that made the distant edges of the forest distort into shapes that changed with every passing glance.

A pair of birds fluttered past as the soft plodding of hooves sounded throughout the silent forest. A grey stallion walked between the labyrinth of trees, a young woman riding on its back. Her blue hoodie was pulled over her head, hiding her brown curls from view, only her bangs and a few spare strands to be visible. She reached down and soothingly patted the stallion's neck, a soft smile growing on her features.

Raven gently pulled on William's reins, guiding the stallion to the left path in the fork they had reached. After a few everlasting moments, a town appeared through the mist. It lay at the bottom of a valley, surrounded by the forest's ghostly cloak of invisibility.

The town itself was surrounded by thick stone walls, ones that ended just below the building's full height. A large wooden gate was on two opposite sides, guarded by a series of soldiers.

Raven urged William forward and the two slowly made their way across the soggy landscape.

The guards turned to face her as she approached. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the paper she had taken from Lapin and handed it to the guard.

"I'm here to trade with the town's brewer." She explained, her voice threaded with dignity and with purpose.

The guard stared at the paper, frowning. He handed it back to her and shook his head. "Miss, I'm sorry, but we are having some issues with security. What is it you plan to be doing with that glowstone?"

"Brewing for potions, of course." Raven replied coolly. "What else would I do with it?"

"Look, Miss, I'm sorry, but I don't think I can let you in-"

"Oh, let her in, Keith." A voice interrupted from behind. The two turned to see an African-American man dressed in a soldier's uniform walk forward. Unlike the others, he wasn't wearing a helmet and was wearing a diamond chest plate, patterned with the town's symbol. He turned to Raven and smiled warmly.

"I know her father personally. She means no harm, let me assure you."

The soldier shifted, his green eyes flickering with embarrassment. "Oh, right. S-sorry sir." He turned to Raven, taking off his helmet and resting it against his chest in an apologetic manner. "Sorry, ma'am, I wasn't aware."

Raven nodded in understanding and the soldier ran off to open the gate. She turned to the other guard and smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Jordan."

Jordan waved his hand nonchalantly. "It's no problem, Raven." He glanced over at the guard and frowned slightly. "Sorry about him. He's new and I'm taking him under my wing. He isn't quite that knowledgeable about certain people."

"He's young." Raven remarked, noticing the youthful face the soldier had. He had light freckles and large green eyes. His messy blonde hair shook as he cranked the gate's door open.

"Yes, he is." Jordan replied. "A little young for being in this part of the military field, but I owed his mother a favor. It was the least I could do. Besides," He smiled at Keith as the young soldier ran back over. "He's not that hard to manage."

"Alright, the gate is open, you can enter." Keith turned to Raven and looked down ashamed. "I'm sorry, Miss. It's just that security has been struggling lately and I wasn't sure whether or not I should let everyone in."

"You don't need to apologize." Raven reassured, smiling warmly. "You're only trying to protect the people within the city. That's a very valuable trait to have." That last remark caused Keith to lift his head, making him smile softly.

"T-thank you, ma'am."

"Well, it was nice seeing you again, Raven." Captain Jordan concluded as Raven started to head into the city.

"It was nice to see you too, Jordan." She waved softly to Keith. "You too, Keith."

Keith stiffened and he smiled nervously after her giving a small wave of his own as the gates closed off behind Raven.

The brunette player and her stallion slowly plodded through the town's cobblestone roads. People were in roofed booths on the sides, selling food and cloth. Women were buying fruit while trying to keep their children from grabbing the treasures inside the booth's baskets. Men were trading armor and weapons in the open-door blacksmith shop and a small group of kids ran by with their dog, laughing happily.

Raven watched as two kids walked out of a bookstore, talking excitedly with other and showing what they had gotten inside. The girl looked absolutely breathtaken with her book while the boy watched with amusement as his friend went on and on about why her book was 'The gift of all creation'.

A voice calling gained both of their attention. The girl waved to her friend and ran past Raven's horse and into the arms of her parents. She showed them her book and smiled excitedly. The mother and father smiled and the father bent down, saying something to her. The little girl's smile grew and she laughed, hugging her parents. Her father picked her up and embraced her as the three of them walked down one of the suburban paths away from Raven.

Raven smiled at the sight. A wave of sadness flashed across her features as she watched the father and daughter walk away. She reached into her hoodie and felt the cool metal of her locket against her fingers. She rubbed it reassuringly and continued onward in the rain.

A wooden sign with a bottle on it tilted in the wind as William and Raven walked under it. It creaked as it waved, almost as if it was giving a quiet greeting to the female player. Raven quickly, but gracefully, dismounted William. She took his reins and tied it to the post by the door, patting his head before heading inside. The building was made of oak logs and spruce planks, the windows made of yellow-stained glass. The door had a sign nailed on it that read "W. Ire's Brewery"

The inside of the two-story building was simple. A staircase hidden in the backroom led up to the second floor. Chests aligned the walls of the backroom and the wall behind the counter, making it appear more like a bar than a store. The counter went across the whole room, a half-door on the far right side. Lamps sat on the windowsill and from the ceiling, giving the room a nice bright glow. A few tables and chairs by the windows were built into the floor and walls, like a small diner for the waiting customers.

A shuffling was heard from the back room and a voice could be heard from within.

"I'll be with ya in a minute!" The voice had a heavy Irish accent and had an aged charm to it. It wasn't a moment later before a man walked into view.

He looked to be in his mid-forties and had blue-grey eyes. His hair was messy and curled around his neck, a brilliant shade of fiery orange. He had a beard that was well-kept and was wearing a green long-sleeved shirt with black pants underneath a brown apron that was stained with a large assortment of colors.

The man broke into a grin when he saw Raven and reached out his hand. "Raven! What a pleasant surprise! How've ya been?"

Raven reached out and shook his hand, smiling back. His hands were tough and felt like leather but they still retained some softness in them. "I've been doing fine, Wilson. How about you?"

Wilson shrugged and headed over to the cash register. "Surprisingly well, actually. Business has been getting better because of the security problems the gates have been havin'. Parents come by a lot now to buy potions lately. Wantin' to protect their kids, I suppose."

"I heard Jordan mention that," Raven replied, handing her paper to Wilson. "About the security problems. What's going on with that?"

Wilson looked at her. "You mean you don't know? _You-know-who's_ soldiers have been getting more aggressive lately. Distant villages are being raided by them a lot, claiming they're looking for 'threatening individuals'. Sounds like a lame excuse for breakin' innocent people's property, if ya ask me."

Raven stiffened and darted her eyes away. "Wow, that's, um…"

"I know, right?" Wilson interrupted. "They have no respect for those people's stuff! Just because they work for You-Know-Who doesn't mean they're better than us. In fact, they're probably worse than us if they're workin' for that son of a b-"

"Wilson." Raven interrupted sternly. "Would did we talk about with your swearing issue?"

Wilson looked like he wanted to retort but instead he sighed and looked down. "That I swear way too much and need to try expressing my anger in a different way." He looked up at her and threw out his arms. "But ya can't tell me that he doesn't deserve that kind of language, can ya!?"

Raven paused. "Well, no, I guess not."

"Told you! That son of a BLUDGER!" Wilson cried, smirking at Raven's deadpan expression. "What?"

She sighed and facepalmed. "You've been reading too much Perry Blocker, Wilson."

"Hey, that broomstick-riding sport is the most creative thing I've ever seen!" Wilson argued, putting his hands on his hips.

Wilson lifted the paper and raised an eyebrow. "Why do ya need glowstone for, anyways? Lapin needs some better potions or do you want some better lighting?"

Raven averted her eyes. "Um, it's actually neither of those. He wants to do some…experiments with heat."

"Fair enough, it is Lapin after all." Wilson replied from the back room. He came out with a large leather bag. "This enough? It's enough to make about thirty-two glowstone blocks."

Raven peered inside and quickly withdrew as the light of the dust inside nearly blinded her. She quickly closed the bag and tied it shut, putting it in her bag. "Yeah, that's perfect, Wilson. Thanks."

She pulled out the bag of gold and handed it to Wilson. "Is that enough?" Wilson nodded and pocketed the bag.

"That's perfect, Raven, thank you." Raven nodded and turned to leave, the man's voice stopping her. "Raven, are ya alright? You seem kinda tense."

She slowly turned and saw Wilson was looking at her concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Raven lied, trying to sound convincing. Wilson raised an eyebrow and gestured to the counter with his head. She sighed and reached over, flipping the "OPEN" sign to "CLOSED". She walked over and sat up on the counter next to Wilson.

"Okay, what's wrong, Raven?" Wilson asked, looking at her. Raven turned to him and started to answer, but paused.

"You need to promise not to tell anyone."

"I promise." Wilson replied, quickly.

"Wilson, I'm serious. If you tell anyone, I don't know if me, or Lapin will be safe. Our lives literally are on the line if I tell you this."

Wilson reached over and gently took her hand. "Raven, Jordan and I have been friends with your father for nearly thirty years. I swear on my life that I won't tell a soul if that means I would be putting either of ya in jeopardy."

Raven nodded and sighed. "You know those people You-Know-Who's soldiers are looking for?"

Wilson gasped. "What?! Raven, I thought ya didn't steal from people anymore! I thought that ender essence would be the last time!"

"No, no, no! Wilson, it's not me!" Raven replied, reaching out and grabbing his shoulders. "It's not me, it's…" She paused, biting her lip.

"What is it, Raven?" Wilson asked, his eyes looking at her with worry. She looked at him and quietly replied.

"You know Mitch? Where he came from?"

Wilson blinked then slowly nodded.

"I made some new friends. They…they know him…from _there_. And I'm helping them get back home."

"And You-Know-Who's lookin' for them?" Wilson asked.

Raven silently nodded, looking at him through her hands. "We heard some people talking about them in a cave a while ago, and I brought them to Mitch, then I when we went back home the house was burned down-"

"Whoa, WHAT?!" Wilson cried. "Your house burned down!?"

Raven flinched. "Um, yeah, but William and Sheep were fine. It's fine, I can rebuild."

Wilson blinked and pointed at her neck. "Is, um, was the…?"

Raven rolled eyes and lifted out the necklace to show Wilson, smiling good-naturedly. The Irish-man sighed with relief and rubbed his head.

"Mother of Notch, that's just…wow." He looked at her. "What happened next?"

Raven tucked the necklace back into her hoodie. "I brought them to Lapin,"

"Smart decision."

The female player rolled her eyes and continued. "He did some more research on them and their world."

"Wait, Lapin _researchin'_? That's shockin'."

Raven glared at Wilson. "Are you gonna do that every time?"

"Sorry, I'll stop." Wilson apologized, smiling mischievously.

Raven eyed him suspiciously before starting again. "Alright… Anyways, then he found out they had these special powers."

"Sorry, _powers_?"

"Yeah. Like Jerome has this super strength and Mitch is like Jordan times one hundred with a bow, and Jason has this astronaut suit that can fly and shoot fireballs out of his arm."

Wilson blinked and gasped. "Wait, astronaut?! Ya don't think they're part of the prophecy, do ya?"

"I'm not sure," Raven answered honestly. "All I know is that they all pretty much fit the bill. A caveman, a golden warrior, an astronaut, a furred man, and a human boy; it all matches up."

"What does that make you?" Wilson inquired, eying her.

The female player jumped off the table. "Not sure, they don't mention that the group has a friend, so I guess I'll just have to make it up as I go along." She walked over to the door and opened it, the sound of the rain blasting into the room.

"It's gonna be dark soon, I gotta go. Lapin's gonna kill me if I don't come back soon." Raven said. _Not that he's not gonna give me Nether anyways after this stunt I pulled_. The voice in her head thought.

"I'll see you soon, Wilson." Raven said.

"Bye, Raven. Say hello to Lapin for me, and tell him he still owes me those three diamonds." Wilson replied, smiling.

Raven nodded and stepped out into the rain. She started to close the door behind her when Wilson's voice stopped her.

"Raven." The Irish-man's voice was filled with rare, pure seriousness. The brunette turned and looked at the redheaded brewer who was staring after her worriedly.

"You realize what you're getting yourself into, if they really are who we think they are, don't you?" Wilson asked.

She paused, furrowing her brow. Raven looked up at him and stared into his eyes. "I know, and I'm willing to fight alongside them, for this world. No matter what might happen." She replied, sincerity in her voice.

With that, she shut the door, the rain's noise silencing in the room. Wilson stared at the door before sighing, walking into the backroom.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

* * *

Keith cried out as a grey stallion suddenly appeared beside him. He slipped on the soggy grass and landed flat on his back. William neighed and reared up, throwing his hoofs in the air. The soldier backed up and watched Raven look down at him in surprise.

"Keith! Oh my Notch, I'm so sorry!" She apologized, jumping off William and running over to him. She took his hand and brought him up to his feet. "Are you okay?"

Keith adjusted his helmet so it was straight and smiled nervously. "Its fine, ma'am; my life only flashed before my eyes, I've been through worse."

Raven looked at shocked. "You have?"

Keith nodded. "Yes, ma'am," He gestured to his right leg and lifted the pant leg, revealing a long scar that traveled all the way from his ankle to his mid-calf. "I got this during a town attack from raiders about a year and a half ago. A guy managed to team up with one of his buddies and struck me down while the other did a number on my leg. Couldn't walk on it for a month."

"Dear Notch…" Raven breathed, looking at him sympathetically. "I'm sorry."

Keith shrugged. "It wasn't so bad. Captain didn't leave my side the whole time, even when they were stitching it up. He kept reassuring me the whole time so I was never really afraid."

"Wow, that's really amazing of him." Raven remarked.

"Yeah," Keith replied. "Things are never really as scary when you have people who matter alongside you."

"Yeah, they sure are." Raven replied. She turned and mounted William, flipping up her hood.

"It was nice meeting you, Keith."

Keith smiled up at her and took off his helmet, revealing his mop of blonde curls as he bowed politely. "It was a pleasure, ma'am. I hope to see you again next time you come to town."

Raven smiled warmly and flicked her reins. William reared up and started galloping down the dirt path. Keith waved as Raven disappeared into the forest. Captain Jordan walked up behind him and smiled at him.

"It's nice to see you making some new friends other than me, Soldier."

Keith yelped and frantically put his helmet back on, facing Captain Jordan and saluting clumsily.

"S-Sir, sorry, Sir!"

Jordan smirked and tilted Keith's helmet so it facing forward and started walking away. "At ease, Soldier. Let's go inside, you'll catch a death of cold in this weather watching the gate. You can observe from the window."

Keith stared after him and slowly smiled, walking quickly to catch up with his captain, the two of them disappearing into the guard's tower.

_**Woo, new people! Three new people! Yay! So, if you didn't quite get it, Jordan and Wilson are Lapin's friends from college. Lapin went to study technology, Jordan joined the military and became Captain of the Guard, and Wilson studied brewing and has a bar and potion shop hybrid. Keith is a 18-year-old soldier who Jordan is watching over until he's old enough to hold his own. He was brought into the guard when he was 17, when he got the scar. And NO, Jordan is NOT CaptainSparklez! This is a different Jordan, the one we know isn't present in this story at all.**_

_**Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed, and liked these new characters. So, this was pretty much just a world-building chapter, but there's going to be more of that in the later chapters. Like, a lot of world building. No, I'm serious, there's a lot of it. **_

_**Stay awesome! -Five**_


	14. Sergeant Mufflebuns

"MMMIIITTTCCCHHH!" Jerome groaned, leaning backwards over the sparring ring's bars. Mitch turned away from his practice dummy and looked the bacca with an unamused expression.

"WWWHHHAAATTT?" Mitch replied, using the same tone Jerome had used.

"I'm bored…" Jerome sighed, throwing his arms up before letting them fall back down, hitting the sides of the ring.

"Are you seriously that needy for entertainment?" The Benja inquired, looking at him disbelievingly.

"YES!"

Mitch groaned and glared at him. "Wasn't destroying my dummy enough?" The Benja gestured to his practice dummy, which was currently standing on one leg with one arm and its head practically dangling off on its neck. Almost as if on a cue, its head snapped off, making a clatter as it made contact with the stone floor.

Jerome shrugged. "He was looking at me funny."

"It's a **dummy**."

"Hey, there's no need to be mean, Mitch. You don't have to start calling names." Jerome argued, crossing his arms and looking at the Benja in a mock glare, a badly hidden smile growing across his features.

The Benja groaned and walked out of the training room. "I'm done."

Jerome started to get up and followed him. "Aw, c'mon, buddy, you know I didn't-" The bacca cut off as a wooden sword flew towards his face. Jerome cried out as he ducked out of the way. The bacca rolled over and landed on his knees, facing the sword as it was embedded in the wooden fence he had been laying across beforehand.

"Okay, not funny, M-" Jerome screamed as a large influx of swords came rushing towards him. The bacca's eyes shrunk like a cat's and he ducked as the sword almost made contact with his head. Jumping in the air, Jerome made contact with the wooden hanger above the ring to escape the dozen of swords that flew where he had been standing before. Instinctively, his claws hidden within his hands extended, digging into the rafter.

Laughter sounded below him and Jerome glanced down, glaring as he saw Mitch standing below, clutching his stomach.

"Oh my Notch," He breathed, wiping his eyes. "That was amazing!" The Benja looked up and burst into laughter again at Jerome's glare. After a few minutes, Mitch finally calmed down and smiled up at him.

"I'm sorry, Jerome. You were just getting on my nerves."

"So you thought throwing swords at me was an appropriate way of saying 'Knock it off'?" Jerome asked coldly.

Mitch frowned and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Okay, that was a little overboard."

"Yeah, a **lot** overboard!"

"I'm sorry, okay? You seriously think I would have purposely hit you?" Mitch inquired, putting his hands on his hips.

Jerome paused and frowned. "Well, no…"

"Exactly." Mitch looked up at Jerome and smiled. "I promise I won't do that again, okay?" Jerome nodded and the two smiled at each other.

"Okay, now get down from there. Adam said something about having a 'guys day out' after Dan wraps things up with Lapin."

"Does it involve fun stuff?" Jerome asked. Mitch raised an eyebrow and after a moment, shrugged.

"I mean, probably…"

"I'M IN!" Jerome replied smiling goofily. Mitch laughed, turning and heading out of the room, muttering something about 'crazy baccas.

Jerome turned to jump down but stopped as a force yanked him backwards. He turned and saw his claws were embedded deep into the wooden rafter. He yanked, his eyes widening as his claws kept his arms locked firmly onto the beam. Bracing his feet against the rafter, Jerome groaned, putting all of his strength into getting his arms free. After a moment, Jerome yanked his left arm free, sending it flying out beside him.

Mitch turned at the sound of Jerome crying out and gasped as he saw Jerome hanging from the rafter by one hand, trying unsuccessfully to pull it out with his one hand.

"Jerome!" Mitch cried, running over so he standing below his bacca friend. "What are you doing?"

"I'm stuck!" Jerome explained, trying to pull him arm free again, sighing as he failed again.

Mitch raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"My hand's stuck! When I grabbed onto the beam, my claws must've extended, because I can't pull my arm free."

"Oh for Notch's sake," Mitch sighed, putting his hands on his head, looking around. "Can you swing up up so you're hanging from the beam with your feet? Then you can use both hands!"

Jerome nodded and started swinging back and forth. After a few swings, Jerome reached out and grabbed the beam with his free hand, pulling his body towards the rafter with his momentum. Wrapping his legs across the beam, Jerome grabbed onto his trapped hand and attempted to pull his arm out.

"Got it?" Mitch asked from below, watching with concern.

"Almost…got it…" Jerome grunted, bracing his feet against the beam again and pulling on his right arm. Slowly, the sound of something scratching wood resounded through the room.

Mitch watched as his bacca friend used his feet as a brace as he practically dangled above him. His eyes suddenly widened as he repeated that fact cognitively and waved his arms frantically.

"Wait, Jerome! Don't use your-"

Jerome cheered in triumph as his right arm broke free, his claws having a few pieces of wood trapped onto it. His victory was short-lived, however, as the bacca quickly realized that without his feet wrapped around the beam, there was nothing to keep him up.

Mitch and Jerome both screamed as the bacca plummeted towards the ground, directly where Mitch was standing. The Benja turned to run out of the way but groaned as the bacca crashed into him, the two of them falling face-first onto the floor.

The Benja and bacca both groaned in pain as they crawled off each other. Jerome rolled off of Mitch's back and onto the ground beside him while Mitch took a large intake of breath, it being knocked out of him as his big furry friend had crashed into him.

Jerome looked at him sheepishly as Mitch glared at him. "I…hate…you…" The Benja breathed as he tried to restore the oxygen in his lungs. Jerome smirked evilly.

"That's karma, dude. Sucks, doesn't it?"

Mitch glared and the two slowly stood up, walking out of the room. Not before Mitch gave Jerome a heavy punch in the arm, the bacca wincing through his smile.

* * *

"Alright," Dan interrupted, walking towards the table everyone was standing around. "What's the plan?"

Adam and Jason exchanged smiles. "Well, we thought that we could play a minigame."

"Wait, a minigame?" Mitch repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Like the minigames we used to play?"

"Yeah, like those." Jason replied. "We figured we'd either do hide and seek or cops and robbers. So, do you guys want to vote or-"

"Cops and Robbers." The three of them replied all at once. Jason lifted his brow and laughed.

"Okay, so that answers that question."

"Why recommend a minigame, Adam?" Mitch asked.

The tall, gold-lover shrugged. "I figured since we've done literally nothing except talk and walk from Point A to Point B, we could take a day or two off just to have some fun. I think I speak for all of us when I say that we're all wound up tighter than a clock right now."

"Oh yeah, totally." Jerome commented, crossing his arms.

"Calmness is foreign to me at this point." Dan added, smirking.

Adam laughed. "Okay then." He gestured to the hallway. "Shall we go play a minigame?"

Mitch held up a hand. "Wait," The group turned to him. "Who's gonna be the warden?" There was a brief pause before a hand shot up. The guys all turned to see Dan holding up his hand, a wild grin on his face.

"I think I know a guy who'd be perfect for the job." Dan said, smiling knowingly.

* * *

"Alright, you varmints!" Dan bellowed, walking between the cell doors, his hands behind his back. He was wearing a makeshift guard uniform, which was simply a blue coat with a matching blue hat. A wooden stick was on his belt and he held a slingshot in his other hand.

"Name's Sergeant Mufflebuns, you might heard o' me before." The caveman spoke in a country accent so bad it made them laugh. Adam and Jerome were in cells on one side while Mitch and Jason were across from them.

Dan held up his stick and slapped it onto his hand, glaring at them. "Now, you lot have been accused of commitin' crimes against the good of public. That's is unacceptable, and my job is to keep y'all in line until you're good enough to go back out to society."

He raised his 'baton' up to Adam's cell. "Y'all may think that this be a simple prison. But this ain't like any prison y'all have ever seen before. You're in Mufflebun territory now, boy."

Adam tried to suppress a snicker and the gold-lover saw the hint of a smile in the caveman's face before it promptly vanished from view.

Dan turned to the other side of the hall and pointed at Mitch through the bars. "You. Canadian!" Mitch straightened up and looked at the caveman in surprise. Dan reached over and open his cell door. He narrowed his eyes and pointed to Jason's cell next to him.

"Unlock your space friend's door. And don't try no funny business, because I will advance."

The Canadian glanced at Dan, trying to stifle his laughter as he got out and walked a few feet to his left. He reached over and flipped the lever, unlocking the cell door. He pulled it open and Jason stepped out, grinning like a lunatic under his helmet.

Dan walked over to Jerome's door. "Y'all will follow me to the yard, where you will be playin' the Simon Says and _not_ run away. If you do, I will use f-" Jerome ran out as soon as his door opened.

"Freedom!" He yelled, running down the hall.

Dan lifted his baton and ran after Jerome. "Oh, we got a runner! We got a runner! You get back here, boy! I will tase your butt, and you won't like it!"

"Baccas aren't meant to be kept in captivity! Run Jerome!" Mitch yelled, cupping his mouth with his hands and his bacca friend vanished around the corner. Moments later, the sound of Jerome crying out was heard and he came back. Dan led him back to the cell at the end of the hall and shut him inside.

"Let your overgrown dog be an example of what happens when you disobey ma orders!" Mufflebuns spat, glaring at the bacca through the bars. Adam and Jason snickered at Dan's choice of words. The warden stiffened and turned to them. "Did I hear someone giggle back here?"

Adam and Jason immediately straightened and put their hands behind their backs. "No, Sergeant Mufflebuns, sir!"

Mufflebuns raised an eyebrow and warily turned away from them, looking at Mitch. "Canada, led your posse to the courtyard." Mitch nodded and walked towards Jerome's cell, but the warden swiftly jabbed him in the chest with his baton. "The bacca will be staying here, boy."

Mitch exchanged an amused look with Adam and Jason and the four left the room quietly. Jerome watched them leave before an evil grin grew across his features. He walked over to the wall that divided his cell from Adam's open one. He glanced down the hall at Dan's retreating figure and starting punching the block away as quietly as he could.

"Alright, pansies!" Dan growled, standing in front of Adam, Mitch, and Jason as they stood in the courtyard. He pointed at them with his baton and narrowed his eyes. "We'll be playin' a round of Simon Says. You must follow the rules, and anyone who loses, gets sent to the penalty cell with your furry friend. Understand, maggots?"

The three of them nodded, making nervous glances at each other. Dan put his hands behind his back and spoke.

"Simon says turn to the left." The three of them turned and faced the backs of each other's heads.

"Simon says turn to the left again." They repeated. "Simon says jump up and down." The three of them began jumping, facing away from him.

"Simon says stop jumping." They ceased jumping and faced away from him. "Turn around." Adam turned around halfway before freezing.

"Oh no…" He screamed as Dan pulled his baton out and ran across the courtyard. Dan reached out and tapped him on the shoulder, making the gold-lover stop in his tracks. "Dang it!"

Dan scowled and pointed towards the cell. "Get back to the cell block, boy, and **stay** there until I come and release you. Understood?"

Adam saluted and walked out of the courtyard, giving a fake frown and waving at Jason and Mitch.

Mufflebuns directed his attention back to the two players remaining. "Alright, diaper babies. It's time for take this game up a notch."

* * *

"This is taking it up a notch?!" Jason exclaimed, standing on top of a tall stack of chairs, balancing a book with a glass of water on top of his head. Mitch was across from him on a similar platform, doing the same thing.

Mufflebuns stood below them and crossed his arms, trying to suppress his obvious enjoyment of his role. "Simon says 'Don't fall'."

"That's not even fair!" Mitch replied, throwing up his arms, flailing as that made him stumble a bit.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Would you like me to put a mattress on the ground, and maybe a band-aid too in case you get a boo-boo?" The warden retorted, rolling his eyes.

Mitch grumbled under his breath and looked up at Jason. The astronaut across from him was leaning back and forth, trying to figure out his center of balance.

The Canadian's eyes widened as Jason suddenly lurched to the side. The astronaut cried out in fear, flailing his arms as he tried to regain his balance. Mitch reached out to grab him, but pulled back as he felt himself begin to lose balance. He could only watch and Jason's book fell off him. The water fell to the ground, along with the blue astronaut.

Jason hit the ground, his suit absorbing most of the impact. He groaned, rolling onto his back and staring up at the sky. He froze as he saw Mitch standing multiple feet above him and jumped up, turning to face Dan.

The warden was standing next to him, holding his baton out like a spear. Mufflebuns got an evil grin on his face and twirled the baton jokingly. Jason stumbled backwards, hitting his chair tower. The chairs bent to the side, nearly crashing into Mitch's tower. The Benja watched from below as Jason and Dan began a game of cat and mouse.

They ran laps around the courtyard, eventually maneuvering their way into the gym equipment. Jason ducked under a punching bag, stopping for a moment to hit it in Mufflebun's direction.

The warden cried out, glaring as the punching bag hit him in the face. He glared at Jason and ran after him, taking care to avoid all punching bags in his path.

The astronaut eventually got near the end. He jumped over the balance beam, looking back to Dan nearly fall over after tripping on it. He grinned and ran back to the center of the courtyard. He saw the ladder for the diving board, that was dozens of feet in the air. He ran over to it and began climbing up it.

Jason could hear Mufflebuns screaming profanities at him and laughed loudly, quickening his pace. He got to the top and walked onto the platform, silently ordering his jetpack to start up. He heard it hum to life and his feet lifted off the ground as the angry warden reached the top.

Jason smirked at him and starting pushing towards the edge of the diving board. "Sayonara, Mufflebuns!"

He froze as his jetpack suddenly stuttered and abruptly cut off. He fell back on the board with a loud clang, the pack's humming getting quieter as it turned off. "What? But, it was…"

Jason's eyes suddenly widened in realization and he turned to Mufflebuns fearfully. The warden seemed to recognize this as well and grinned maliciously, walking towards Jason. The astronaut took a step back, feeling his foot nearly slip off of the diving board's edge.

Mufflebuns gave him an evil grin and reached out his baton, lightly tapping his shoulder. "You're out, rookie."

A loud yell came from behind him and the two looked down to see Jerome running across the courtyard. He jumped onto a punching bag and swung it, gripping the edge of the roof and flipping out it with ease. The bacca stuck his tongue out at Mufflebuns and ran across the roof towards the library.

"FREEDOM!"

"Hey, you get back here, you rotten, sneaky maggot!" The warden yelled, running to the ladder and rushing down it. Jason followed after and caught sight of Adam sneaking across the courtyard towards Mitch. The astronaut followed suit as Dan ran after Jerome and the two met up under Mitch's platform.

"Mitch, climb down! Hurry!" Adam called, trying to keep his voice down. The Benja nodded and silently began to make his way down his tower of chairs.

"How did you guys get out?" Jason asked curiously.

Adam smirked and gestured to the roof. "Jerome broke through the wall of the cell so we could exit through one of the open ones."

"Ah, classic move." Mitch remarked, jumping down and landing next to Adam and Jason.

Adam motioned for them to follow and they ran inside. He led them down the hall and to the warden's office. "Okay, so Jerome is the distraction while we run for it. At least three of us have to make it out of here so we can win."

Mitch and Jason nodded and Adam stepped through the door. The three jumped as a computerized voice came on the loudspeaker.

"_WARDEN'S OFFICE HAS BEEN OPENED_."

They heard Dan scream something from above them and Adam swore under his breath. "Go, go, go! Hurry!" Adam grabbed the keys from the desk and ran to the stairs. When they got to them, he quickly unlocked the door.

Jason leaned around the corner and saw the warden appear at the end of the hall. Mufflebuns caught sight of him and he yelled in anger, running towards him.

Jason yelped and turned to them. "He's coming!" Adam pushed the door open and held the heavy door open so Mitch and Jason could slip through. "Adam, quick! Shut the door!"

Adam pulled the keys out and flung them down the hall. They landed with a clang near the warden's office and his began to pull the door shut. Just as he shut it so it was locked again, Dan's voice appeared on the other side.

"You filthy maggots open this door right now! Open this door!" Dan banged on it and they could see the door knob shake as Mufflebuns tried to open it. The warden cried out in frustration and Adam quietly snickered.

"C'mon, hurry! We have some time before he catches up!" Mitch turned and ran up the stairs, Jason and Adam following. Adam stopped at the door to the courtyard and yelled Jerome's name. Moments later, the bacca dropped into the hall and patted Adam's shoulder in thanks.

The four continued up the small set of stairs, opening the metal door that went to the runway over the cells. They heard Dan yelling something from below and behind them, prompting them to ran faster.

They reached the door and Jerome leapt forward, grabbing onto Mitch by the hoodie. The Benja cried out as Jerome dropped him onto his back and slid down the ladder, hitting the grass quietly. Jason and Adam dropped down closely behind him, the four running across the gravel pathway. When they reached the bridge to the boat, Jerome heard Dan yelling something from far behind them.

"He's coming, guys! We got to go fast!"

Three nodded, laughing as they starting jumping down the elevator shaft. "This is so scary, but also so awesome!" Adam remarked as he landed on a landing, reaching out to take Jason's hand as the astronaut stumbled when he landed beside him.

"Dan is so good at this, it's actually terrifying!" Mitch added, jumping towards the rope in the middle and grabbing onto it. He used it as a climbing rope and began to quickly crawl down it towards the ground. Jerome was on the outside, using the iron fence as a climbing wall and going at an equally fast pace.

The bacca reached halfway to the bottom, stopping on a ledge. He backed up and leapt forward, claws extended. Jerome's hands gripped the boat's sail and he hung from it. He used his claws like a brake and slid down it, finally dropping the last few feet to the bottom and making it on the boat.

Jerome turned and ran to the edge, watching Mitch drop to the floor of the elevator shaft. Adam followed closely behind him, Jason still a two levels above them.

The Benja eyed the gap warily, glancing up at Jerome. The bacca nodded and reached out his hand in preparation. Mitch inhaled and exhaled calmly, closing his eyes briefly. With a sudden rush of speed, the Canadian ran forward and pushed off of the edge of the platform. He flew over the water's surface for a brief moment before grabbing onto the edge of the boat. Jerome grabbed his hands and helped him over the edge.

Adam glanced upwards at Jason, who was standing on a ledge directly above him. His eyes widened as he saw Mufflebuns making his way down at an alarming speed. His screaming profanities became easier and easier to hear as he neared, putting the two of them on a timer.

Adam took a running jump and nearly fell over as he hit the railing and flopped over it. The three of them stood up and Jason stood alone on the ledge, eyeing the gap nervously.

"Jason, hurry!" Adam urged, glancing up at the tower frantically. "He's almost here!"

The astronaut glanced at the gap and back at them before nodded. He could hear the warden's voice resounding from directly above him and he took that as his sign to go. Jason's legs moved quickly across the stone platform, echoing through the empty air. Jerome and others called out to him, looking nervously at something behind him.

Jason felt the ground shake as Mufflebuns landed directly behind him. The warden yelled at him and Jason pushed off of the ledge, losing contact with the ground. He inhaled sharply as he felt the warden's hand graze his shoulder as he floated above the water for what seemed like eternity. Time had seemed to slow down and the astronaut could only watch as the boat's edge came closer and closer to his fingertips.

Jason hit the side of the boat hard, the metal of his suit clanging against the wooden railing of the boat. He gripped the sides frantically and pulled himself upwards, Adam reaching over to grab onto his arm to stop him from falling. He clambered over the side and fell unto the boat's deck to his knees.

_"__ALL PRISONERS HAVE ESCAPED TO THE BOAT. PRISONERS WIN."_ A computerized voice on the intercom spoke, echoing through the chamber. The boat and deck flickered before whirring loudly. The images turned into gridded patterns before vanishing from existence. Mitch, Jason, and the others all stood in a group in the center of the room. Dan stood a couple feet away from them, holding the wooden stick loosely in his grip.

The four of them got joyful smiles on their faces before cheering.

"We did it! Yes!" Mitch cheered, pumping his fist against his chest.

Dan frowned and laughed, throwing his baton down. "God dang it! I nearly had you guys!"

"I still can't believe you stayed in character for the entire game!" Jason exclaimed, chuckling at Dan's armored attire. The caveman smiled and took off his helmet, revealing the usual black hat underneath.

"That was freaking awesome, I gotta admit."

"Did you see Jerome?!" Adam exclaimed. He put an arm around Jerome excitedly. "He was moving across the roof like a ninja!"

"Dude, you should have seen Jason!" Mitch replied, gesturing to the astronaut. "He was running through the gym like he somehow conjoined with the Flash! The skills!" Jason smiled, embarrassed.

The door to the room opened and Lapin poked his head in. He had an amused look on his face and he stared at them questioningly. "Well, it definitely sounds like you guys were having fun."

"Were we too loud?" Dan asked concerned.

Lapin shook his head. "No, but Sheep and I could hear you from anywhere in the basement." The guys chuckled nervously and the scientist smirked. "I was wondering if you guys wanted to join me in the training room for a bit to just hang out?"

They nodded and followed the scientist out the door and down the hall. Lapin pushed the training rooms doors open and let them enter behind him. "Jason, I wanted to work with you specifically so we can work on some kinks in your suit. Mitch, do you want to help the others get situated with basic fighting techniques?"

"Sure."

Jason nodded and the two walked over to the arena. Mitch gestured for the others to follow him and led them over to the dummies. Lapin sat Jason down and started explaining the mechanics of his suit and how it operated.

Mitch took out a wooden sword and tossed one to Adam and another to Dan. Jerome took a wooden axe off of the wall and weighed it in his hands.

"Alright, I'll start with Dan. Adam, you and Jerome pair up on that mat. Just work on trying to make contact with each other." The bacca and player nodded and moved to the mat beside them.

Mitch crouched his knees and held out his sword. "Alright, Dan. Let's see what you got." The caveman held up his sword in front of him with both hands. Mitch lunged forward and aimed for Dan's left side. The caveman reached up and blocked the hit, pushing Mitch's sword away from him. He swung forward, stumbling as he missed. Mitch swerved around him and tapped his back with his sword.

"Okay, you're already making a mistake." He reached out and positioned Dan so he was standing straight up. "You can't put all your force into your arms. Stay balanced. Like now, your legs are straight, you have to bend them." He pushed Dan's feet to the side and the caveman bent his legs. "There you go."

Mitch readjusted Dan's hold on his sword and backed away. "Don't let your balance go all into your arms. Use your balance to your advantage, but don't let a swing like that control which direction your falling in." Dan nodded and the two held up their swords again.

Mitch lunged forward as well as Dan. Their swords clashed and Mitch pushed Dan back. The caveman staggered slightly but recovered, blocking a hit from Mitch's wooden blade. As Mitch was leaning forward, Dan retracted is arm and curved it around the Canadians, hitting him straight in the chest.

Mitch gaped and stopped, grinning. "Nice, Dan!" He straightened and grinned at the caveman. "You're a natural."

Dan shrugged. "Thanks, though I'm not sure I'm what you would call a natural. We're all not technically born with these skills."

Mitch shrugged, smirking. "Meh. You're still pretty good for a beginner. I'd let you cover me on the battlefield any day." Dan grinned and lifted up his sword.

"Shall we go again then, kind sir?"

Mitch chuckled and mimicked him. "With pleasure, my lad." They grinned determinedly, both slowly advancing towards each other. Once they got within close proximity, Mitch raised his sword. Dan copied his actions, giving the Canadian a sly grin.

"Hi guys…"

Everyone froze and turned towards the door at a lightning-fast speed. Raven stood in the doorway, her bag looped across her back as she gripped the handle nervously. She gave a weak, pensive smile and laughed nervously. "Um, I'm back."

The first one to respond was Lapin, who rushed forward and enveloped her in a tight embrace. "Raven! Oh thank Notch, you're okay! You're not hurt, are you? Anything infected? Broken? Sprained?"

The brunette recovered from the initial surprise and smiled reassuringly. "No, I'm fine, Lapin. Really, I am."

Lapin sighed and pulled away, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Good." His expression suddenly turned furious and he shook her a little. "Then what in the Nether were you doing running off on your own?"

Raven raised her hands up reflexively and Lapin grabbed her bag, pulling it off her harshly. "Don't you realize how much you had us worried? You could've been killed and we never would have known!" Raven's face morphed into guilt and she raised her hands, stammering to come up with a response.

"It's a good thing Sheep told us why you had left and where, otherwise we probably would have gone out there to look for you!"

Raven froze and she turned to Sheep. The mob shrunk and ducked behind Dan's legs, nervously trying not to make eye contact.

Lapin glared at her and dropped his arms to his sides. "Raven Diorite, you are on house arrest, by me, until further notice."

Raven's eyes widened. "Lapin-"

He held up a finger threateningly. "No buts, missy. You want to go out on your own and risk your life, along with scaring your family and friends to death? Well, these are the consequences." He shook his head and turned away from her, walking away towards the lab. "We'll talk about this more tomorrow. End of discussion."

Raven stood there frozen as she watched her adoptive father walk out of the room, leaving the five of them in silence. She turned to them tentatively, unsure of what their reaction would be.

It was a pleasant surprise to see that her friend's reaction was the exact opposite of Lapin's. Within moments, the brunette was being smothered by the five players, happy shouts of relief being exchanged amongst the group.

"We were so worried about you!" Jason exclaimed.

"You missed the most intense game of Cops and Robbers ever!" Sheep remarked, throwing out her arms.

Raven raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Um… what?"

Adam laughed as the group broke apart. "Well, we could show you it, actually."

Dan's face froze. "Oh, no. I'm _not_ doing Sergeant Mufflebuns again! Someone else gets a turn at being the warden!"

Raven turned and Jason questioningly. "Sergeant… Mufflebuns?" The astronaut waved a hand.

"I'll tell you about later, don't worry about it." The female player shrugged and the guys led her to the simulation room, explaining the rules as they went.

"You guys seem really hyper today. Is everything okay?" She asked, noticing their energetic behavior. Mitch grinned at her.

"We've just been pumped up because we got a play a mini game for the first time as a group."

Jerome nodded in agreement. "Oh my gosh, Raven, you should have seen me! I had broken through the jail cell and snuck onto the roof…"

Raven smiled as Jerome retold the last games events, feeling more relaxed. She glanced down the hall and into the main room and frowned. Anger began to build up inside her, but she pushed it down harshly.

She could vent it all out later. For now, she had some friends who wanted to hang out with her.

* * *

Raven's cries of irritation carried throughout the practice room. She was slicing at a dummy next to the arena with a wooden baton. Her arms thrashed in anger as she breathed heavily, glaring at the dummy with an icy glare.

Dents were all over the dummy that had not been there hours before. She had been going at this for over half an hour now, nearing forty five minutes of nonstop beating.

Raven glanced at the dummy one more time, examining its stupidly cheery face. Her face turned stone cold and she raised her baton like a baseball bat. She cried out in fury and swung hard.

She didn't look to see where the head landed, but she heard it crash into something metal on the far side of the room. The brunette stared at the ground, her shoulders shaking from the exhaustion. After a few moments, she flung the wooden stick at the ground and stomped over to the arena.

The female player sat down on the side of the ring, slumping forward and covering her face with her hands. She gave an exasperated sigh and continued to breath heavily in silence.

Soft footsteps came from the doorway. "You know beating the crap out of a training dummy isn't going to magically make you not grounded anymore, right?"

Raven didn't reply, or make any sign that she heard him.

Lapin sighed and walked forward, stopping beside her by the ring. He watched her, waiting for some sort of response from her. When none came, he silently sat beside her on the edge of the ring. He put his hands in his lap and twiddled his thumbs, glancing at her.

"Raven, talk to me."

The brunette looked up suddenly and turned to him. "Talk to you?" She hissed. Lapin watched, warily, as she stood up, standing over him. "_Now_ you want me to talk to you? How about when I tried to explain myself before you grounded me? Or when I volunteered to go to the town in the first place?"

She pointed at him accusingly. "If you hadn't let me explain myself, we never would have had this problem!"

It was Lapin's turn to glare. "Don't you dare try to claim that everything that happened was my fault!" He stood up and Raven turned away from him.

"I didn't let you go to New Blockington because I didn't think that it was safe for you!"

"Really? Well, you'll be glad to know that I came and went without a hitch!" Raven shot back. "I know how to protect myself, Lapin!"

Lapin gave a fake laugh. "Oh, you do? Because you going off on your own without telling anyone with guards looking for you _and_ your friends doesn't look like protecting to me!" He took a closer to her. "And neither does being an inch from dying of starvation when I found you almost fourteen years ago!"

Lapin turned to face her and raised his arm in front of her, the long, faded scar being perfectly in view. "Or me having this _permanent_ reminder of when you ran off into the Hostile Woods without any type of defense, and was nearly _killed_ by a swarm of zombies!"

"You never told me what was in there!" Raven yelled, glaring at him as he walked away from her. "You only thought that locking me away in here was the best way to raise me! You knew I didn't belong locked away, underground! You _know_ that what you said to me is what sent me there in the first place!"

"I was mad!" Lapin exclaimed, throwing out his arms. "You know I didn't mean it!"

Raven crossed her arms. "I don't, but eight-year-old me didn't."

Lapin glared at her. "Why is this such a hard thing for you to understand, Raven? All I ever wanted was to keep you safe, and you go off and risk your life every day. I don't see you for months at a time, and sometimes I don't even know if you're alive, or dead! Do you ever just take a step back and think about the risks you're taking?!"

Raven's mouth straightened into a thin line. She shook with anger at Lapin. "Don't say that like you know that I don't understand the risks. I am well aware of the risks!"

"Then why do you take them!" Lapin shot back. His fists were clenched in anger. "What would Elizabeth say if she could see you-"

"DON'T YOU DARE BRING MY MOTHER INTO THIS!"

Lapin stopped. Raven was glaring at him, nearly vibrating from the anger emanating from her. His face softened as he saw her hurt expression. He knew he struck a chord.

"Raven..." The brunette turned away, walking towards the ring and facing away from him. Lapin stopped, feeling the anger in the room quickly start to slip away. His own anger was quickly replaced by guilt.

"Raven, I didn't mean it like that." He slowly approached her, but kept a couple feet of distance between them. "I meant that I don't think that she would want you to risk your life for the sake of something that you could just ask me for."

Raven didn't look at him, but he took a small step closer. "I will never be the man your father was, and I can never be your mother either. I don't want to replace them, but I do want to try to be the parent that you deserve. The parent figure that you were robbed of before you even turned _seven_."

Lapin swallowed and touched her shoulder. Raven didn't shake him off. "I love you, Raven, and I don't want go another day where I can't sleep at night because I don't know where you are, or if you're even alive." He turned her so she faced him. "I don't want you to do this anymore. I know it's a habit and you do acknowledge the risks, but the fact that you ignore them frightens me more than anything."

Raven looked up at him and the two stared at each other in silence. The brunette reached forward and hugged Lapin. The scientist returned the welcomed embrace and the two stood in silence.

"I miss them…" Raven whispered. Lapin frowned and rubbed her shoulder.

"I know, sweetie. I know." He pulled away and looked at her. "But you know what?" He wiped her eyes with his thumb. "I also know that they would be so proud of you. Here you are, twenty years old, with a family, friends, and you're fighting to protect the world you love. I can't think of any reason why Aaron or Elizabeth wouldn't be proud of you."

Raven smiled shyly and looked up at Lapin with a questioning look. "You know she took the biggest risk anyone could take to protect my dad and I, and she succeeded."

"That doesn't mean that it's okay to do the same thing for simple things like this." Lapin replied. "I'm not comfortable with you risking your life anything, but I know it's just the way you are. You like adventure and enjoy the rush of adrenaline you get when you're in danger. Heck, it's even in your blood because of your father." He frowned at her. "But risking your life for just some glowstone, or anything that simple, is something I can't and won't be okay with."

He took her hands and held them tightly. "Promise me that you won't do things where you put your life on the line anymore."

Raven looked down for a few seconds before looking up at him. "I promise."

Lapin smiled and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. "Alright." He let go of her and pointed to the room's entrance. "Now get upstairs and go to bed, young lady."

Raven rolled her eyes playfully and picked up for wooden sword, setting it back on the weapons rack.

"Raven, one more thing." Raven turned around to Lapin. The scientist crossed his arms and looked hesitant to say something.

"I… I know that these next few days and weeks will go by quickly. As soon as this is over, you're grounded for a month. No exceptions, got it?"

Raven nodded, grinning. "Crystal clear." She opened the training room's double doors and walked through smiling. "Night, Lapin."

Lapin smiled and put his hands in his pockets. "Goodnight, Raven." As the doors shut behind her, the scientist glanced at the training dummy. The headless wooden mannequin stood there, marks from her attacks still sticking out like a sore thumb. He chuckled, walking over and picking up the head. He placed it back on top, watching as it fell down and clattered to the ground the moment he let go of it.

He shrugged and picked up the head. He set it on the edge of the mannequins arm and it hung there. Lapin grinned and heading out the door following her. As he walked down the hall, he heard the sound of Jerome snoring in the guy's room.

He suppressed a laugh and continued down the hall, walking up the stairs and flicking the light off behind him.

**_Hey, look! A wild chapter appeared! Wow, it feels like it's been forever since I last posted another chapter. I didn't expect for this one to be so long. I had originally wanted to cut it up, but they were so closely connected, I just added a little filler and merged them into one. Hope you guys enjoyed this one! _**

**_On a side note, I've been wanting to write this chapter for the longest time, and I am so happy that it turned out of the way I wanted it to! Yay! The only sad thing is that this chapter is the turning point of the story. I didn't really think about it before, and it's finally dawning on me that this chapter is _****the****_ chapter before the _****big****_ thing that happens in the story. You all don't know what it is, but I'll just say that it's a big thing. Hope you all enjoyed! :3_**

**_Stay awesome! -Five_**


	15. Potential

"Jason… Jason… JASON!"

Something whacked the side of Jason's skull, jolting the astronaut awake. He raised a hand to his now-sore forehead and his eyes shot open. The room was dark and silent, aside from a small silhouette by his face. "Wha… Sheep?"

"No, it's the gingerbread man. Yes, it's me!" Sheep replied, his voice sounding like he had rolled his eyes. "You gotta come upstairs!"

"Wait, why? And why me?" Jason questioned. Sheep sighed.

"Lapin's in his coma-mode, so he's totally out, and you're the first person who woke up when I tried to get someone to help."

"Help? Sheep, what's going on?!" The astronaut exclaimed, annoyed that the animal was being so vague.

"It's Raven. She's… she's having a nightmare."

Jason slumped, almost annoyed. "A night- Sheep, can't you just wake her up by yourself? Why do you need me?" He felt Sheep's woolen arm touch his shoulder.

"Jason, you don't understand! She's on her bed screaming at the top of her lungs and no matter what I do, she won't wake up. I figured-"

Sheep gasped as Jason suddenly stood up beside him, towering over him. He felt himself get pushed to the side as Jason ran as silently as he could across the room and out into the hall. "Jason, wait!" Sheep called, running after him.

Jason turned into the main room and noticed Lapin slumped on the table, completely out. Parts of a machine were scattered around him and some redstone dust had somehow made it into his hair. Sheep nudged him and the two made their way upstairs, trying to go as quickly as they could without waking everyone else up.

As Jason and Sheep opened the door that connected the house to the basement, Jason could hear muffled cries from above his head. He ran past Sheep and made his way to the second floor. He walked along the hallway and stopped outside Raven's room. Jason could hear her voice through the wooden barrier, a mixture of sobs and cries of fear.

Sheep nudged his leg and the astronaut looked down at him. The mob was looking up at him with a worried and sympathetic expression. He silently motioned to the door and hopped through the small door built into the bottom. Jason bit his lip and hesitantly opened the door, stepping into Raven's room.

The room was simple. The walls were a smooth dark spruce wood with acacia trimming. A desk was set on the wall in facing the door, a few bookshelves next to it with a decent amount of paperbacks and hardcovers scattered on it. An iron helmet was being used as a makeshift bookend and pieces of paper were scattered on the desk with a few pens and pencils. A thick, dark purple carpet was laid on the ground, a small bed made of gray wool and oak wood placed in the far right corner. Two end tables were built into the wall to the left of the door, a large circular window filling the empty space. Moonlight poured in and draped across the navy blue sheets of the bed.

It was on this bed, that Raven Diorite was lying on, in the middle of a nightmare.

Jason took a step back, not sure if he had permission to move any closer. A cough from Sheep and a sharp gesture made it clear to him that he was supposed to go up to her. The astronaut slowly made his way over to her.

She was in a half-fetal position, her arms pulled close to her chest as she shivered from the unseen horrors her mind was presenting her. Jason slowly reached out to her just as she flinched. She suddenly thrashed, tangling herself in her bed sheets as she cried out.

"No...! NO!" Raven sobbed, reaching out for something, twisting her body around on the mattress. Jason jumped back, panicking as she threw her limbs around, twisting her body like a pretzel before him. He reached her arm, stopping as she yelled out again, crying.

Jason reached out and gripped her shoulders, halting her movements. She stopped and whimpered, shaking as Jason tried to calm her down. Raven trembled, letting Jason push her back into the proper position, where her head was on the correct side the bed. He let go gently, moving down and taking her hand, rubbing it with his thumb.

"Hey, you're okay, it's alright…" He assured her, kneeling down so they were at eye level. She moved her head to the side, facing him, and her face slowly relaxed. She was still silently shivering, but her yelling had ceased, much to Jason's and Sheep's relief.

"Nice job, Armstrong." Sheep commented, smiling at Jason. "I've never seen anyone manage to calm her down that quickly."

Jason smiled sheepishly. "Thanks, Sheep. Thank you for telling me that this was going on."

"It's nothing." Sheep shrugged as Jason stood up. "She gets these all the time, it's nothing new to me."

Jason's eyes widened. "Wait, what? She's get these a lot?" Sheep froze and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah, she gets like one a month or so. Lapin says it has something to do with the grieving process."

The astronaut's brow furrowed. "'Grieving process'? What do you mean-" He got cut off as Raven's hand tightened around his, her voice piercing the quiet atmosphere of her room.

"Dad...don't leave me..." She whispered, her voice sounding less strained and more relaxed. Jason's eyes widened.

"She has dreams about her parent's deaths? Every month?"

Sheep didn't make eye contact with him at first, looking at Raven as her breathing returned to normal. "Not every month, but she does have them often. I mean, what else do you think she would have nightmares about, Jason? She was _there_ when it happened, remember?"

Jason nodded, turning to look at her, frowning. He felt a wave of anger wash through him. "How could anyone suffer that?" Sheep glanced up at surprise. He had never heard Jason's voice filled with so much hatred before. Jason looked at him in a saddened expression.

"She doesn't deserve that kind of torture, no one does. I won't let _him_ do any more harm to anyone else. Especially her." Jason slowly rose, gently prying his hand from Raven's grasp. She lingered her hand for a brief moment, like she was going to reach for it, but it relaxed and she pulled it back to her side.

Jason looked at Sheep before walking through the open door and out of the room. "Thanks again for telling me about this, Sheep. I'm glad I could help."

Sheep smiled at him and shrugged. "You're welcome." The astronaut smiled and took one last glance at Raven before disappearing down the hall, shutting the door behind him.

Sheep stared at the closed door for a few more moments before looking at his friend's sleeping form. He walked over to the side she was facing and jumped up. He walked over and laid down next to her stomach. He felt her stir and she shifted, next to him, ceasing her shaky movements.

Raven's eyes opened sleepily and she looked down at him tiredly. "Sheep, why are you up here?" Sheep opened his mouth to reply, but rethought his response. He realized how she would react if he told her that he had let one of the guys into her room while she was sleeping and quickly thought against it.

"You, um, had a nightmare, so I came up here to try and make you feel safer." The brunette smiled gratefully and hugged him, pulling him close and shifting so she was in a more comfortable position.

"Thanks, buddy." She furrowed her brow as she contemplated something. Sheep noticed and felt nervous about her expression.

"What?"

"I could've sworn that I heard Jason before I woke up…I thought I heard him talking me." Sheep shifted his eyes, quickly trying to come up with a reasonable lie.

"It was… probably just your dream. No one's been up here except you and me."

Raven nodded and leaned her head back so it was looking up at the ceiling. "It must've been my mind playing tricks on me." She let Sheep adjust so he was nuzzling against her chest and closed her eyes. "Night, Sheep."

"Night, Raven." The small mob replied, watching out of the corner of his eyes as Raven fell back asleep. He glanced at the door and smiled softly, looking at Raven. Multiple thoughts and ideas ran through his head, but he roughly blocked them all out. He shook his head one more time before lowering it onto the bed's pillow. A few minutes passed before Raven and her animal friend had fallen into a peaceful, uninterrupted sleep.

* * *

"How'd you all sleep last night?" Lapin asked, taking a long sip of his coffee. Adam shrugged and rested his arms over the center table.

"It was pretty good, actually. I think that's the best time I've slept in the past few days." Lapin smiled and glanced at Dan. The caveman was looking down, rubbing his eyes. He hadn't touched his coffee yet and was staring at in a trance, like he focusing on something.

"Dan, what about you?" Dan jumped, nearly dropping his mug as he jolted upright. He looked at Lapin in alert.

"What? What about me? What'd I do?" Lapin raised an eyebrow and stared at the caveman critically. He reached over and slowly pulled the mug away from Dan, pushing it towards Mitch, the Benja gladly drinking it.

"I was curious if you slept alright, but I can see you clearly didn't sleep at all."

The caveman laughed nervously, looking away embarrassed. "O-Oh. I slept, I was just…occupied with other things."

Lapin frowned and crossed his arms, leaning against the counter. "Like what?" Dan took his hat and rubbed it with his thumb nervously.

"Well, I… I was reading one of the books you gave me for a while-"

"Dan!" Lapin exclaimed, throwing up his arms as the caveman winced. He covered his face and dragged his fingers down in exasperation. "Those were supposed to be read when you're_ awake_!"

"I'm sorry!" Dan replied, looking away guiltily. "It's just…everything I've learned has been so interesting, I can't stop reading! The prophecy, the geography, everything is just so incredible!"

Lapin gave him a stern look. "That doesn't mean it's right to damage your health for this. Dan, you need your rest. If I have to confiscate your books in order for you to do so, then so be it."

Dan frowned and nodded silently. Lapin turned away and glanced at the stairs, smiling as he saw Raven quietly enter the room. "Raven! Good morning!"

The brunette gave him an amused smile. She crossed her arms and sidestepped over to the counter. "You're in a good mood this morning." Lapin only shrugged and drank some more of his caffeine-filled beverage. Raven walked over slipped into the space between Jason and Mitch. The Canadian grinned at her and the two exchanged greetings.

She turned to Jason and frowned as she noticed that he was not making eye contact with her. "Jason? Is something wrong?" The astronaut turned to her and smiled tiredly.

"Oh, no. I'm just…tired." She hummed in response and looked away, starting to talk to Mitch about some new fighting technique she heard about in New Blockington. Jason exhaled quietly and turned away, his blue eyes flickering towards her nervously.

He caught eyes with Sheep and the animal waved his forelegs in a 'no' gesture. Adam looked at them both confused and glanced at Jason curiously. He mouthed 'what?' silently and Jason held up a hand, shushing him. The astronaut leaned over, eyeing Raven warily.

"I'll tell you later." He whispered, moving away and pretending that he hadn't said anything. Adam looked at him in confusion and turned to Sheep, completely lost. The mob waved a hoof absentmindedly. The gold-lover's mouth drew into a thin line and he leaned back into his chair, unamused. He crossed his arms and looked down, watching Jason out of the corner of his eye.

"Hey, Lapin?" Jerome asked, getting the scientists attention. "I was wondering if I ask you a question."

The scientist grinned. "Of course you can ask me a question, Jerome! What is it? Ask me anything, and I can answer it!"

"What's the prophecy that includes us about?"

Lapin and Raven both froze. They shared a quick look of apprehension before Raven nodded, smiling softly. Lapin swallowed and adjusted his glasses. "Well, um… Are you guys familiar with the story of our leader…Herobrine?"

"Wait, the guy who's running this place is Herobrine?" Adam exclaimed loudly, sitting up and nearly falling over. "We didn't know that! Why didn't you guys mention that to us?"

"You guys never asked." Raven replied coolly, shrugging. Adam dropped his arms to his sides.

"But you…we never-" He groaned, curling his fingers and covering his head as he bent over the table.

Jason turned to Mitch. "Did you know about this?"

Mitch nodded. "Yes, I knew. I thought you guys already knew, so I didn't bring it up." Dan and the others groaned in unison.

Lapin eyed them warily. "Should… I continue?" Everyone nodded, mumbling under their breath. "Okay, so the prophecy is a legend that has existed, in the world, almost since its beginning. It was and is very vague, but also very detailed."

"How can a prophecy be vague _and_ detailed?" Dan wondered, looking at him curiously.

"The prophecy describes a group of protectors that will be come to the world whenever there was a large threat. The origins and exact details of who the guardians were was unclear, but it did say that they would only come when the threat would be at its most vulnerable. In smaller tales connected to it, it gave some information on each hero. The guardians consisted of four humans, or players, and one animal. One archer, one beast, a flying soldier, and two warriors. The purpose of the guardians was to protect the innocent, the weak, and all those who are good. Before Herobrine took over, the prophecy was taught in schools as part of history. Since then, he's banned all teachings of it and has a law to arrest anyone who follows its words."

Lapin turned to Jerome. "The teachings suspected some sort of large animal that already existed in the world. One of the common conceptions was that the animal guardian was a giant dog that would protect the children of the world. The archer protected the woods and elders, the soldier the skies, and the two warriors and the ocean and places underground. I think all of us can associate each of you with one of those things, respectively."

Adam stepped forward, wringing his wrists. "But, Lapin…W-We're not soldiers. We can't protect the people in this world, we're just… us."

"That is the point, Adam. You're just you." Lapin replied. "Not just you, but you're people from another world. A world where this place is a _game_. A game that you are all familiar with. Who could possibly be a better protector for a world than someone who knows it inside-out?"

Dan stood up. "But we don't know everything, Lapin!" The scientist turned to him. "There's so many things we don't know! So many things we need to learn! Whatever you're asking us to do, we can't do it!"

"Yet."

The caveman looked at Lapin skeptically. "It seems big now, but think about it. All five of you, step back and look at where you are. You're playing a _game_. You become experts by experience and learning. That's all you need. Think about what you already know, and apply it here. I know you can do this. Each of you has the potential to do this. I know you do, and I know that deep down, you all know it too."

The group looked at each other apprehensively. The bacca shared an uneasy look with the others, the group sharing that same look. They were silent, looking at each with uncertainty. Something brushed against Jerome's arm and he saw Mitch beside him, looking at him. Mitch gave him a small smile and Jerome looked at the group, nodding. Dan echoed it and Jason turned to Adam. The two looked at each other and the gold-lover looked over at the rest of the group.

They looked at him expectantly, silently assuring him of what they collectively decided. Adam exhaled through his nose quietly, approaching Lapin. He stopped once he was right in front of him, his taller height making him look down slightly at the scientist. Adam glanced back at the group and saw them nod at him, encouraging him to continue. He looked back at Lapin and a small smile grew across his face.

"Where do we start?"

* * *

**BAM! The story's about to wild turn, kiddies, and it's going to be a fantastic one! The past chapters have really been a build up the next chunk of this story, so I hope you guys are ready to see the reason why this story is in the "Adventure" genre. Things are about to turn up a notch! **

**As a little comment about Raven's character; Yes, Raven suffers from night terrors. Lapin had given her therapy when she still went to school and it has improved a lot since she was little, but it's still a problem for her. You'll get a better glimpse of that in the future, but for now, just enjoy that taste to her character I've given you.**

**Stay awesome! -Five**


	16. Abducted

"We need a plan." Lapin remarked, walking through the basement door with his arms full of scrolls. He kicked the door closed behind him and promptly dropped them onto the table. Jerome and Mitch jumped back as multiple canisters fell in front of them with a loud clatter.

Raven picked up a beat up scroll and unraveled it. She pushed the majority of the scrolls aside and spread it out on the table. Her hands gestured towards the center of map. "This is the entire world." She moved her finger over the drawings symbolizing a forest, a house labeled 'New Blockington' next to it. "We're here, just outside the town's borders."

"We need to coordinate a method of travel that can bring us here, the world's designated capital, Bedrock City." Lapin commented, pointing over Raven's shoulder at a drawing of a tower near the center right before setting more scrolls on the table.

"That's where Herobrine is?" Dan asked, resting a hand on his cheek as he leaned over. Raven nodded and gestured to the map.

"Yep. This is the map we'll be using, since it's the most detailed one we have of the entire world."

"It's also the most valuable!" Lapin replied from behind the large pile of scrolls. Raven rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

"Lapin, they're not gonna ruin it."

The scientist poked his over the pile and narrowed his eyes. "It's a family heirloom! An old one, I might add!" He walked over and thrust his hand down at it. "My father gave me this map, along with his father before him! It's not something I'm just going to hand out to anyone!"

Raven raised an eyebrow in amusement. "But there isn't any other map like this one, is there?" Lapin opened his mouth to retort, but Raven gave him a knowing look. He closed his mouth and walked back to the pile of scrolls, grumbling under his breath.

Raven shook her head and bent back over the map. "Okay, so since he's looking for us, we can't expect to get to the city by any normal means."

Adam leaned over her shoulder, furrowing his brow as he didn't see any alternative paths. "Are there other routes?"

The brunette nodded and rested her finger on New Blockington. "No commonly known ones, but Lapin's ancestors were known for traveling; their maps were some of the most detailed and intricate of their time, and they still are today. You guys will start at The Hostile Woods, which is directly west from here. Then, you'll travel to the mountains where you can stop at Witch Haven and the mountain village there. The people there are heavy followers of the prophecy and would be glad to help you guys out. After that, it'll be open fields, so the safer option would be to travel through the underground ruins of one of the older cities."

"I didn't know you guys had underground cities." Jerome remarked, looking at Raven and Lapin curiously. Lapin tossed a scroll over his shoulder, not looking up as he searched for something.

"We did, but after Herobrine came to power, they became abandoned. The larger one, which is the one you'll be going through, used to be an underground lake that belonged to Elder Guardians, but dried out and was rebuilt as a city. It's just a giant, dark, and dead underground labyrinth now."

"Oh…lovely." Dan squeaked, trying not to look nervous.

Raven pointed to a red mountain on the top center. "After you guys make it through there, you'll have to make your way through the volcanic tunnels of Obsidian Cliffs." She looked up at Jerome, smiling teasingly. "And don't worry, the volcano has been inactive for centuries. It's just rivers of lava, perfectly harmless."

"Said by no one ever!" Jerome barked, throwing out his arms in exasperation. Raven looked at him with a deadpan expression. She watched silently before gesturing to the map.

"Can I continue, please?"

Jerome looked away and crossed his arms. "Yes…" Raven felt a smile tug at her lips and she turned back to the map.

"Alright, so after traveling through the _inactive_ volcano, it's just a quick detour through the swamp outside the city, then you're in."

"Don't you mean 'we'?" Mitch asked, looking at her as he leaned over the map. Raven shook her head, taking the map and rolling it up.

"Nope, I mean you. Lapin and I are going to be traveling in the other direction. The one Herobrine will be expecting."

"What?" Mitch and Jason exclaimed simultaneously.

"You five are going on the path Raven showed you, while Raven and I will be going in the expected direction as decoys. We'll be meeting you in the city once you arrive."

"Wait, no! Raven-guys, you can't!" Jason cried, walking over to the two of them. He approached the pair and looked at them worriedly. "You guys could get killed!"

Raven looked at him in amusement. "You'd be surprised at how good of an actor Lapin is." Lapin nodded and turned to Jason, putting a hand on his shoulder in reassurance.

"Wilson and Jordan will be going with us. We'll be stopping at New Blockington before we go to get them. Since Jordan is a captain for New Blockington, he will be our guard for the trip. If anything goes wrong, we'll be protected."

Jason stared at them uneasily. "But, it's Herobrine! What if he figures out that you two have a connection to us?" Raven smiled at him softly.

"We'll be fine, Jason. Really, we will." She walked past him and took the map, slipping it into a gold canister. She took a plastic lid and twisted it on, tossing it to Lapin before turning to the caveman. "Dan, I'm going to give you a small travel journal that has information on each place you'll be encountering when you guys go. As long as you're careful, you guys should be safe."

"Wait, are we not going now?" Adam asked. Raven shook her head and Lapin poked his head out, pulling out a small book. He placed it besides the canister and walked over.

"This isn't something that we can just jump into willy-nilly; we have to be prepared. That being said, we're going to go on a short mining trip a mineshaft I found not too long ago. I found a diamond or two down there from exploring a little, so I think it would be a good bet to go back and look for more. I'm staying here to find the other maps you'll be needing." Lapin looked up at the pile of scrolls that towered over him. "That being said, I'll be here for a while."

Raven reached into her pockets and pulled out her black gloves. "You guys know the drill. Let's go!"

"Are we walking there?" Dan asked as the guys began to gather their tools and weapons. Raven nodded as she began walking towards the stairs.

"It's not very far, only about a mile north from here." She gestured to the door and ran up the steps to the second floor. "Go ahead and wait out there. I'll be out in a minute!"

Dan nodded and picked up his pickaxe and sword, slipping them into the hooks of his pack. Mitch and Jerome grinned and ran towards the door eagerly. Adam waved to Lapin and followed after him. The astronaut stopped, waiting behind. He turned to Lapin worriedly. "Lapin, are you sure-"

Lapin smiled, patting his back. "Raven may be a bit reckless, but she does know when she's in danger. We'll be safe, Jason, I can promise you that." The astronaut nodded and hesitantly walked towards the front door, exiting the house.

Raven ran up the steps to her room. She opened her door, rushing over to her shelf and desk. She picked up her pickaxe from the wall, setting it in her pack. She picked up her bag and ran out the door, shutting the door behind her. She jumped down the last few steps and rushed towards the stairs.

Lapin took hold of her arm before she ran out the door. "Whoa, whoa! Not so fast, missy!" Raven sighed, stopping and looking at Lapin in annoyance. "What are the rules we set?"

Raven sighed, crossing her arms. "'Don't take big risks, don't endanger myself or others, and if there's any sign of threat, get the _heck_ out of there.'" Lapin nodded and let go.

"Correct." They stared at each for a minute in silence before the scientist took hold of her shoulders, pulling her into a hug. Her arms were pinned to her sides as he embraced her, making her laugh. He pulled away and lingered his arms over her for a second. "Be safe."

"I will." Raven smiled and leaned forward, kissing his cheek. "Bye, Dad."

Lapin's eyes widened for a brief moment before he grinned happily, watching her leave with a toothy smile. Raven ran down the steps and reached the group. He saw her say something before they all took off running down the path, their footsteps echoing as they run through the watery trail.

Lapin crossed his arms, looking down as Sheep approached the front door. The animal watched them leave, smiling and looking up at Lapin. He frowned as he saw Lapin's face in a dazed expression.

"Lapin?"

The scientist touched where she kissed him, grinning like a madman. "She called me 'Dad'…" Sheep looked at him incredulously, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, for the love of-" He turned and walked back into the house. "You've got issues, dude!"

Lapin ignored him, feeling his heart swell as he heard Raven's laugh echo through the rainy forest, yells and laughter coming from the direction they ran in. His chest was puffed out like a mother bird and he let out a happy laugh, holding back tears of joy. The scientist turned back into the house grinning as he shut the door softly behind him.

* * *

"Okay, what the heck happened between you and Raven?" Adam asked as they ran through the woods. Jason nearly tripped, looking at his taller friend as he tried to hide the blush threatening to appear.

"N-Nothing! It was just something that me and Sheep talked about last night." The gold-lover looked at him skeptically.

"Seems like more than nothing, if it bothers you this much." Jason glared at him, speeding up and running ahead of him. Adam rolled his eyes and quickened his pace slightly, easily catching up with his shorter friend. "Jason, what's the problem?"

The astronaut looked at him apprehensively. "I don't think it's my place to say."

"If it's something that's bothering you, than as my friend, it is." Adam retorted. Jason sighed and looked ahead. He slowed down to put some distance between them and the others. He turned to the taller gamer nervously.

"Raven has night terrors." Adam's eyes widened. "It's because of the deaths of her parents. Sheep said she gets them regularly. She had one last night, and Sheep had me come and try to comfort her."

"Is that why you're acting like this around her? It was awkward?" Adam asked, putting his hands in his pockets.

"She doesn't know that I know." Adam stopped, looking at him in surprise. "She didn't wake up and doesn't know that I was even there."

The taller gamer rubbed the back of his head, looking forward. "So… this is bothering you because you know something that she isn't aware that you know?"

"Yes. Well, that, and…" Jason turned away and blushed. Adam caught it and leaned over.

"What? What else is there?"

"I, uh… I was in her room. While she was sleeping."

Adam blinked. His face stretched into a look of shock and he looked down at his friend sharply. "Wait, did you see anything… revealing?" Jason gasped and covered his mouth. Adam cried out, his voice muffled as his friend glared at him.

"Shut up! I didn't see _that_!" Jason hissed, keeping his voice down. He let go and the gamer straightened up, raising an eyebrow.

"Then what's the problem?"

"Because, if she knew that I was in there, that'd be the same as telling her that a guy was watching her sleep last night! And who wants to hear that, especially if it's one of their friends? I feel awkward already, I just want to save her the embarrassment!" Adam narrowed his eyes. He leaned over, looking down at Jason critically. The astronaut blinked in confusion. "Um…Adam?"

The gamer's eyes widened and he stood up. A bright grin was on his face and he looked at Jason with amusement. "You like her!"

Jason froze mid step. His eyes flickered towards Adam nervously and back at the ground. "W-What? N-No, I don't like Raven! Well, I do, but not that way!"

Adam pointed at Jason, a wide grin on his face. "You so do!" He laughed at the astronaut's reddened face. "I knew my hunch was right!"

Jason stuttered, turning to him surprise. "Wait, you _knew_?"

Adam looked at him in amusement. He eyed the rest of the group in front of him before continuing to speak. "Jason, I've been dating for over three years. I know a thing or two about what _crushes_ look like."

The astronaut covered his face, trying to hide his blush. "A-Adam, shut up! I-I don't have a crush on her!"

"Yes you do." Adam replied cheekily.

"No, I don't!"

"You totally do!" The taller gamer said in a sing-song voice.

"I don't!"

"Do."

"Don't."

"Do!"

"Don't!"

Adam took a deep breath, holding it in before leaning towards Jason, towering over him. "Yes, you do." He whispered, grinning like a cheshire cat. Jason cried out in irritation, covering his head with his hands.

"Adam, stop!" The gamer laughed, leaning away. The astronaut took his helmet and put it on, crossing his arms and turning away.

"What is your problem with this?" Adam asked, throwing out his hands. "Raven's cool, so what's the big deal?" Jason turned to him silently and after a minute or two, slowly lifted off his helmet. He exhaled, looking down at his reflection in the metal.

"I don't have a problem with it. I don't, it's just…" He looked at the rest of the group, eyeing Raven as she was speaking with Dan. "I'm worried about her. I don't want her to risk her life for us and get hurt, you know?"

Adam nodded, looking at him sincerely. "Do… do you want to tell her?"

Jason looked up at him quizzically. "Well, yeah, I do, but… how could I tell her? It's kind of a private thing, and we're never really alone." Adam narrowed his eyes and stroked his chin.

"Leave that to me."

Jason looked at him worriedly. "What are you gonna do?" The taller gamer shrugged as Jason and him caught up with the group.

"You'll see eventually."

* * *

Raven stopped them as they stopped outside a cave entrance. It was a mineshaft entrance, a few boards hiding it from view. Raven lifted them off, holding them so everyone could slip through. She set them back in place behind her and led them down the hall. The afternoon sun gave them enough light to make their way into the large cavern down the tunnel. A few torches and stray minecart equipment were strewn about, lighting the hall ceiling. Four tunnels extended in all directions, one lit up with torches all the way down.

Raven lit a torch, passing it to Mitch. "Alright, we shouldn't stay here for the whole day, but we don't need to rush." She turned to the group. "Everyone split into groups of two and we'll meet up here in a bit."

Mitch and Jerome high fived and ran off down the cave. Jason started walking towards Adam, but the gold-lover stopped him. He gestured behind the astronaut with his eyes. Jason turned his head and saw Raven talking to Dan, handing him a torch and smiling.

Jason looked back and gave Adam a nervous look. The taller player grinned and pushed Jason forwards. He gave him a thumbs up and the astronaut looked at Raven, quietly approaching. She smiled at him and he grinned back at her.

As Raven headed down the mineshaft entrance, Jason looked back at Adam. He flung his arms out silently, giving him an annoyed glare.

"Adam, I didn't mean _now_!"

Adam shrugged brightly, Dan walking over to him as the two headed in the opposite direction. "I'm helpful!"

The astronaut watched them leave, finally breaking from his frozen stance when he heard Raven call his name. He turned and ran down the tunnel, following after Raven, the group splitting into pairs.

Jason watched her nervously, trying to calm his nerves. Raven was skimming the walls for ores and picking them as they walked. He caught himself, realizing that he wasn't doing anything. The player took out his pickaxe and hastily began chipping away at some iron ore. Raven eyed him worriedly.

"Jason?"

The astronaut jumped, dropping his pickaxe. He laughed nervously, freezing as Raven approached him. She picked up his pick and pushed it into his hands gently. "Are you okay? You've been acting weird all day."

Jason swallowed, grateful that his helmet hid his reddened face. "I'm fine. I just... didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

Raven narrowed her eyes, looking him up and down. "Are you sure that you're just tired? Because you've been jumpier than a rabbit whenever you're near me." She dropped her arms to her sides. "Was it something I said?"

The player looked up at her in surprise. "N-No, Raven! It's not you, it's just me-"

"So there _is _something wrong?" The brunette interrupted, leaning forwards curiously. The astronaut looked away, stammering to come up with a response. "Jason, just tell me what's wrong! I promise I won't judge you if it's something personal."

Jason bit his lip, contemplating what he was going to say. After a minute of debate with his inner thoughts, he looked up at Raven nervously. "Promise you won't get mad?"

Raven raised an eyebrow in confusion, but nodded steadily. "Yeah, I promise." Jason reached up and took off his helmet, shakily exhaling. He swallowed, staring at her apprehensively before quietly replying to her.

The brunette furrowed her brow, not picking up what he said. "What?" Jason repeated it again, still not decipherable. "Jason, I can't hear you. Please, speak up."

The astronaut closed his eyes as he raised his voice, much louder. "I know you have nightmares about your parents!" Raven blinked before gaping, taking a step back in surprise. Jason flinched, looking at her apprehensively.

"I'm sorry, Raven! You had one last night, and Sheep had come and got me to help, because you weren't waking up. Then I ended up going into your room, even though I didn't want to, and I saw you having the nightmare and Sheep told me about how you get them a few times a month and I got nervous because I was watching you sleep, in a way, and that made me even more nervous. I'm sorry about finding out about this, Raven! I know this must have been a really personal matter for you..."

Raven was looking at him in a frozen state of shock. She shook her head, breaking out of her trance, and glanced down at her feet. "I didn't want you guys to find out about that." The brunette looked up and gave a weak smile. "Well, I'm gonna give Sheep hell for what he did, now."

Jason looked at her worriedly and Raven turned away, clearing her throat. "Raven, I'm sorry I found out about this. It's not in my place to say, but I just want you to know that we're here for you." Raven looked back at him and after a few moments, let a small, genuine smile grace her features. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

She shook her head. "No. The nightmares have gotten to a point where they can't really improve anymore, at least by any natural means. It seems like a lot from an outside perspective, but it's not so bad once you get used to it. Really, it's not…"

Jason nodded quietly, his face still emitting a concerned expression. The brunette smiled softly and nudged his arm with her elbow. "Are we just going to sit around here, or do we want to actually do some mining?"

The astronaut scoffed as Raven walked across the tunnel to a small vein of iron. He threw his arms up in exasperation. "What-how? How do we come back from _that_? That wasn't a very bright conversation!"

The female player narrowed her eyes as she wracked her brain for a response. She shrugged and pocketed her few pieces of iron ore. "Well, how about we go into any questions you have about the world and go from there?"

Jason chuckled and walked past her. "It seems like all we've been doing has been asking questions."

"Well, you're in an entirely different world, after all. Questions is kind of a given for this type of scenario." Raven replied as she placed a torch on the wall beside her.

Jason nodded and looked away in contemplation. "Alright then… what's the story behind technology?"

Raven looked back, furrowing her brow. "Well, about twenty years ago, computers were introduced to the public. They're still not very common, but do exist in more industrial based towns and facilities. The common village may have just one in their library for research purposes, but we don't have 'Internet', I believe is the term Mitch called it."

"What else do you guys have?" Jason asked curiously. Raven smiled, noticing that her friend was beginning to get more comfortable with talking.

"Well, potion making and engineering is very developed, as you could tell from your suit and Lapin's laboratory. Lava and ender reactors power towns and some individual homes, but the biggest reactor is a nuclear one in Bedrock City, which can power the entire capital."

Jason whistled. "Whoa... that's a lot of power."

Raven shrugged. "Personally, I'm not into the technical facts of the world. I prefer the literature and theatre."

"Literature? Like books and plays?" Jason asked, his eyes widening when Raven nodded in confirmation. "What kind of theatre?"

"Well…" Raven narrowed her eyes. "There's classics like 'Guardians of Aquarius' and 'Withering Love', but I think my favorite is the book series by D.B. Podzol. She's fantastic!"

"What's the name of the series?" The astronaut questioned amusedly, seeing his friend's excitement at the topic of her favorite author.

"I think there's an equivalent to it in your world, actually, from what Mitch has told me. Her name is Joanne Rowling, or 'J.K. Rowling', I believe. Our world's series is called 'Perry Blocker'. I'm finishing the last one, 'Perry Blocker and the Deathly Void' right now, actually."

"'Perry Blocker and the Deathly Void'?" Jason exclaimed, laughing. Raven shrugged and crossed her arms.

"Yep. Mitch told me about your world's counterpart, and I have to say, it's very creative. I've never heard of the name 'Hermione' before, though. Your culture is very interesting."

"I just, I can't even-" The astronaut laughed again, having to lean against the wall. "That is amazing. Just… perfect!" He looked at her amusedly. "Have you finished reading them all, except the last one?"

Raven nodded, walking through an intersection in the mineshaft, placing a torch on the wall. "I lent my copy of the series to Wilson, and he's halfway through the fifth one, 'Perry Blocker and the Half-Mob Prince'."

Jason stifled a laugh, grinning madly. "'The Half-Mob Prince'?" He burst out laughing, making the brunette join in. She smiled at him and reached above her head, mining from iron.

"Maybe if we have time afterwards, I can find another copy of the first one for you to read."

"Oh, I don't know if we'll have time for that." Jason replied, opening a minecart chest and looking at its contents. "I think we're leaving as soon as we can find a way back."

Raven's face fell. "Wait, so you're not staying?"

Jason froze, his face peering over the chest's lid. "Well, yeah. We have to get back to our friends, our family. We can't be here forever, or else they'd be worried sick."

Raven nodded and looked away, her attitude noticeably gloomier. "Right, I understand..."

Jason stood up and walked over to her. "Did...did you want us to stay?" She didn't look at him at first, but the brunette finally moved her eyes upward.

"Well, I understand that they're your families, and your life isn't here, but if it were up to me... I know I wouldn't want you guys to leave." She rubbed her shoulder. "That's not fair, I know. It's selfish, but if I'm honest with myself, it's just how I feel about it. You guys have become my second family, and I never felt more at home and more... complete when I'm with you guys. I wouldn't want to give that up."

She didn't' say anything else, her head lowered to the ground guiltily. Jason looked at her blankly, his mind turning as he watched her. His mind became a tug-of-war between moving on with the conversation or telling her how he felt. He felt as though it was a right time to say it, and he exhaled nervously. The astronaut's hand intertwined with Raven's, the brunette looking at him in confusion.

"Raven, I..." Jason bit his lip, trying to find the words. He took both her hands and the astronaut looked up at her seriously. "There's something I've got to say. I don't know if it's the right time to say it, but I can't keep this locked away any longer."

"Jason...?"

"Raven, when I first met you-"

"Jason."

The astronaut looked at her pleadingly. "Raven, please let me finish. This is something I need to say to you."

"Jason!"

The astronaut blinked, looking at Raven confused. She was looking at something behind him in shock. He started turning around, but the brunette grabbed his arm. "_Don't_ turn around. We have to leave. Now."

Jason's stomach sank. "What is it?"

Raven looked at him seriously. "When I say run, _run_. There's something down there, and it's watching us. Get ready to move." Her voice was shaky and he could tell that she was scared.

"Raven…?"

"Run!" She pulled him forward and the two took off down the mineshaft. Jason could hear something move behind them, but he fought the urge to look back.

Raven slid around the corner, running and skidding over the smooth stone. Jason followed behind her, seeing torches extinguish behind them in his peripheral vision. The brunette ran ahead of him, glancing over her shoulder to make sure he was still behind her. Something behind him made her jump and she turned right sharply. Jason almost fell over trying to follow her through the mineshaft, darkness starting to envelop the area behind them.

"Raven, what is it? What's back there?" Jason yelled, unsure of whether he should risk turning around to see for himself. They reached a gap in the shaft over a ravine and Raven leapt over it, rolling onto the other side. Jason followed after her and finally turned around to see the threat behind them.

What he saw made his blood turn to ice.

The shaft they had just ran down was pitch black, the torches going out as the darkness crept closer. Black and purple smoke oozed over the stone surface, churning as it was pushed forwards by some unseen force. A figure was in the center of the smoke. He was wearing a black cape that covered his body along with his face. He suddenly looked up and Jason fought the urge to cry out in horror. His eyes were a bright, milky white, glowing like the moon.

_Herobrine__**.**_

Raven called his name and Jason turned around, following after her. The pair reached the last few turns to the mineshaft, the exit not far ahead of them. Raven took a torch off the wall and threw it down the mineshaft. It touched the wooden planks that supported the roof and began to catch fire. The smoke stopped at the flames and they heard an angry, ghostly yell echo down the hall behind them.

"That should buy us some more time to get the others and leave!" Raven spoke hurriedly, pulling on Jason's hand to help him catch up.

"How did he find us?" Jason cried out fearfully, glancing over his shoulder as he ran.

"I don't know!" The brunette replied, pushing a mine cart out of the way as she passed. "But all that matters now is that we get you guys out of here!"

The sound of a hiss came from a corner up ahead and around the corner. Raven skidded to a stop as the two of them came to a four-way in the mineshaft. A green creature was standing directly to their left, staring at them menacingly. Its black, soulless eyes peered at them like a predator to its meal and hissed, glowing white as it expanded. It was a Creeper.

"Move!" Raven jumped forward, pushing Jason ahead of her just as the creeper exploded. The bang echoed down the mineshaft, a gaping hole where the intersection used to be.

Jason coughed as the dust faded away, waving a hand. He glanced back at the hole and could see the smoke still hadn't caught up with them.

Raven lifted her head beside him and coughed, looking back as well. Jason got to his feet and ran ahead a few steps. He peered around the corner and could see the exit just up ahead.

"Almost there! We can make it!" He ran around the corner, stopping as he didn't hear Raven's footsteps behind him. He turned and ran back worriedly. "Raven?"

The brunette was trying to push herself to her feet. The left side of her hoodie had been scorched off and he could see her abdomen had been badly burned. Her arm had been scorched as well from the blast, the edges of the bright blue fabric burnt black. She cried out in pain as she tried to get back up, collapsing to the ground.

"Raven!" Jason rushed forward and took her arm. He looked up and saw the darkness had entered the hallway behind them, beginning to creep towards them. "We've got to go! C'mon, I'll carry you!"

The astronaut tried to pick her up, but Raven gripped his arm, holding back a yell of pain. "Jason, don't! If you carry me, we'll never make it. Go ahead of me and tell the guys about what's happening! Don't wait up for me."

Jason looked at her incredulously. "What?!" He looked at the hall again and tried to grab her arms. "Raven, I'm not leaving you here!"

"It's you he wants, not me. He'll pass over and follow after you guys." She grimaced and put a hand over her burn. "Don't worry about me."

"No! Just let me carry you, we can both make it!" Jason replied, panicking.

"No, we can't!" Raven cried, groaning as she grabbed onto him with both hands. "We won't be fast enough if you carry me. This is our only chance." Tears threatened to fall and she looked at him fearfully.

"I lost my family to Herobrine once, I'm not going to let him do it again."

Jason stared at her, swallowing a lump in his throat. He took hold of her hand and squeezed it. "I'll come back for you, Raven. I promise."

Raven looked up at him with a pained smile. "Go, while there's still time."

Jason gave her one last tearful look, looking down as he tried to suppress a sob. He reluctantly got to his feet and let go of her hand, their fingers slowly peeling apart. Jason turned and ran around the corner, glancing over his shoulder tearfully as he disappeared.

Raven collapsed against the stone floor, clenching her fists as she tried to push herself to her feet. She got to her knees before her side burned in pain, making her fall back onto the rock floor. She gazed at the floor in front of her in anguish, trying to use her uninjured arm to pull herself forward.

The back of her neck chilled like ice and Raven felt something thick cover her legs. She glanced up weakly and saw the black smoke enter her vision. A dark shadow passed over her and Raven saw a pair of brilliant, white eyes stare down at her before the clouds covered her, everything going black.

* * *

"Adam! Dan! Guys!"

Everyone looked up as Jason ran from around the corner. He looked out of breath and was staring at them with a panicked expression.

Dan stepped forward worriedly. "Jason? What is it?" The astronaut looked over his shoulder worriedly and looked back at them.

"It's Herobrine! He found us in the mineshaft! We have to get out of here, quick!"

"Where's Raven?" Adam, looking back down the hall nervously.

Jason looked behind him fearfully, then back at them. "She got injured from a creeper and insisted that I went ahead to warn you guys."

"Wait, you left her there!?" Mitch cried in shock, dropping his pickaxe and walking towards Jason.

"She wouldn't have let me if I had tried! He doesn't want her, he wants us. She wanted me to go ahead and warn you guys before it was too late. If I had tried to carry her, neither of us would have made it."

"Where is she?" Adam asked concerned. Jason looked over his shoulder again.

"She's back around the corner at one of the intersections. A creeper had showed up and she got caught in the blast. I tried to help her, but she kept insisting that I left her behind." His arms lowered and he looked down shamefully. "I didn't... I wanted to help, but she wouldn't let me..."

Adam put a hand on his shoulder and everyone froze. Something metal clanged down the hall from where Jason had gone, then silence followed. Everyone pulled out their weapons of choice, aiming down the hall in preparation. Minutes went by and nothing changed.

Dan took a nervous step forward, lowering his sword. "Is he there?" Jason looked at him blankly before running down the hall.

Adam reached out to him, running after him. "Jason, wait!"

The astronaut started up his hand gun, his palm humming as it charged up. He rounded the corner and blasted the area in front of him. He took out a wooden pillar in front of him, wood flying across the room in burnt chunks. the astronaut continued down the hall, not stopping as he heard the others call after him from behind.

"Raven, we're coming!" Footsteps echoed down the hall and Jason appeared from around the corner. Adam and the others were close behind him, entering the destroyed intersection.

The spot Raven had been was empty. Small swatches of burnt fabric were scattered across the floor, the scorch marks from the creeper still evident in the stone around them. Jason turned his head and walked towards the intersection.

"Raven? Raven, please answer! Where are you?" A glimmer behind him made the astronaut turn around. Something was glinting in the torchlight where Raven had previously been.

Jason approached the spot, picking up the fabric and gasping, jumping back. Raven's locket lay on the stone floor, the chain broken as it looked like someone had ripped it off. The oval locket was still intact, shining from the torch light as Jason picked it up gingerly. He held it like it was a baby bird, staring at the small object in his palm.

"Jason..." Adam put a hand on his shoulder and the astronaut tried to keep himself from crying.

"She's gone," Jason whispered, looking up at Adam tearfully. The dark-haired player nodded and rubbed his shoulder, looking down regretfully. "Herobrine took her."

Dan covered his mouth with his hands and Mitch stiffened. He and Jerome shared a look of worry before looking down mournfully. The caveman shook as he processed what Jason had said, looking at the rest of the group fearfully.

Jason stared down at the locket, reaching out and touching its smooth surface with his thumb. He saw his own reflection through the locket, distorted from the round surface. Dozens of different emotions swarmed him, most of them related to heartbreak in some shape or form. He was going to her how he felt and never got the chance. She would never know now…

Like a rubber band, something snapped inside of him. His sadness morphed into fury as Jason stood where Raven had been, injured and incapable of moving. This is was all His fault. All because of _Him_.

Adam saw Jason's hand wrap around the locket in a tight fist. The astronaut shook beside him, making the gold-lover uneasy. "Jason...?"

Jason turned around sharply, holding the locket in his hand with a clenched fist. He brushed past Mitch and Jerome silently, walking at a brisk pace.

"Jason! What are you doing?" Dan called, watching their friend worriedly.

Jason stopped at the end of the tunnel. His fist shook, the locket's chain dangling between his fingers. He glanced back over his shoulder, but continued walking down the hall, vanishing around the corner.

"I'm going after her."

* * *

**Bet you guys weren't expecting that twist, were you? Did it take you by surprise? Are you mad that I messed with your feels after making the beginning so happy? Good, that was the plan ;) You'll get an update on Raven's condition soon, but for now, the main cast is missing one of its members. Haha, I'm so devious :3**

**Stay awesome! ~ Jay**


End file.
